Snowflakes and Firebombs
by NameForsaken
Summary: "With Yang, Weiss didn't feel like she had to be perfect. She was just Weiss, and she was there, at Beacon Academy, lying next to someone who made all of the trials she had to go through in order to be accepted into that school actually seem worthwhile." Freezerburn AU. WIP.
1. The Song

**A/N: This is a Freezerburn AU that takes place after the events of Volume 2 (and after the tournament), and Weiss's family will be based around her history in mine and Slayer_ONE's Schnee AU "Snow Days". **

Weiss Schnee sat in her team's dorm room, alone, chewing on the end of her pen cap as she stared at the black-and-white pages of the thick textbook splayed out in front of her. She had been rereading the same paragraph on trapping and killing a Boarbatusk for almost a half-hour, now, unable to focus as her mind kept wandering back to that night. It had been almost a month since Team RWBY had taken a field trip to Mountain Glenn on their first mission, and everything was just starting to finally get back to normal. But it wasn't the debacle with Torchwick and the White Fang, or even the large invasion of Grimm, that kept Weiss up most nights; no, it was the night before all of that happened, when she, Blake, and Yang had laid around the warm fire, talking about what it was that drove each of them to Beacon in pursuit of fighting for the greater good.

It was the first time she had ever opened up to anyone about her feelings on the corruption of her family's company. Of course, Blake had tried to just brush aside Weiss's thoughts as ignorance, as always, but Yang had continued to encourage each of them regardless, neither pushing her teammates out of their comfort zones, nor denying the troubles that both Blake and Weiss had had to face. It wasn't like her father was even a terrible person, because he was far from that; but in the years of taking over the Schnee Dust Company, her father had become absorbed in the business, and hardened by the attacks the White Fang had been initiating against the company for almost half a decade. He only did the things he did because they were what he truly thought were right, and Weiss hoped that someday, she would be able to help him see the error in his ways, and somehow make peace with all of the things he was so deathly afraid of.

She understood why Blake hated the Schnee family so much, and it would be a lie if Weiss said that she didn't hate certain aspects of her name, as well. But no matter how hard she tried to become her own person, all her teammate saw at the end of the day was the spoiled, rich heiress that everyone else thought her to be. The truth was, all Weiss wanted was to make a name for herself, one that made people see Weiss as just Weiss, and _not_ the perfection-obsessed Schnee. She owed her life to Blake for saving her that night on the train, but she didn't want the girl to see her as just some privileged princess who could barely fend for herself. While Ruby and Yang were finally starting to get that, Blake, for whatever reasons, just couldn't seem to look the other way.

It was why she had tried so hard that semester to become more like Yang. Unlike Blake, the blonde wasn't afraid to tell Weiss what was on her mind, and she put herself out there, even if it meant doing or saying something stupid that would ultimately get her laughed-at. Of course, it was probably easy for someone as beautiful and intimidating as Yang to get what she wanted. She didn't have any kind of social status to protect, so she could say whatever and get away with it, and she was strong enough to take on just about any other person in the kingdom, so she never had to worry about anyone else standing in her way. Yet, somehow, despite all of that, she still surpassed all of those dumb, brutish stereotypes that others liked to associate with someone like Yang. She wasn't _just_ a pretty girl, or _just_ a strong fighter, but she was an older sister, a pretty good one as far as Weiss could tell, and although she made Weiss furious more often than not, the heiress knew that there was much more to Yang than met the eye.

The sudden sound of the bedroom door opening lulled Weiss from her thoughts, and she lifted her gaze from her textbook to see her tall, blonde teammate walking in, her arms stretched high above her head.

"Oh, hey, Weiss," she said with a friendly tone as she walked over to the paler girl's bed. "I thought you went out with Ruby and Blake."

Weiss lowered the pen from her mouth, slightly disgusted by the sight of her own teeth marks as she recapped the writing utensil, and set it aside. "I decided to stay here and study instead... I really want to finish this chapter before class tomorrow."

Her teammate nodded, glancing at the cover of the book. "Aren't you already, like, three chapters ahead of everybody else in Grimm Studies?"

"It's not like I have anything better to do." She turned her gaze back to that same, dragging paragraph. "Besides, there's never any harm in staying ahead."

Yang frowned. "But that's _so_ boring... Why don't you try doing something, you know, _fun_ for once? You're always studying for this or that."

Weiss slowly sat up, and closed her book, realizing she wasn't going to get anywhere with the reading, especially now that Yang was there to further provide for distraction. "For your information, I actually _like_ to study... You never know when this kind of stuff is going to come up in the real world."

"The only thing you need to know about Grimm is that they'll kill you if you don't kill them first," the blonde chided. "I don't see why you have to study, anyway. You've already got straight A's in all of your classes."

She smirked. "What's wrong with having straight A's? My father always told me if you're proud of something, you let it show."

The other girl just crossed her arms. "Yeah, because he should be _so_ proud of the way he treats his Faunus workers..."

"Now you're starting to sound like Blake."

Yang sighed. "I was just saying." She gave Weiss a small smile before walking over to her desk on the other side of the room, and opening the drawer just underneath the desktop. She pulled out a thin, familiar-looking square case, and brought it back to the bed. "If anything, your dad should be proud of this."

Weiss furrowed her eyebrows at the case, and took it from Yang. The cover was light blue, and had the white Schnee logo in the center, a little music note icon in the top right corner. She opened the case, and pulled out a small music chip with five words labeled on the outside edge: "Mirror, Mirror" by Weiss Schnee.

"Jaune went on a rant one day a while back about how you could sing, and I guess I thought he was bluffing, so he told me about this song, and I went to the store to pick it up."

The heiress suddenly felt her face flush as she turned to look up at Yang. "That song is, uh, well... don't pay attention to any of the lyrics."

"Don't worry, I'm not going to try to psychoanalyze you or anything." She took the case back, and tapped it lightly against her hip. "I _do_ want to hear you sing something, though."

"Uh, no," Weiss said. "I don't do personal concerts."

Yang huffed. "Oh, come on! I'm your _teammate_!"

She rolled her eyes. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"I helped you in Remnant: The Game that one time. You owe me."

"And then you destroyed me right after that!"

The blonde let out a light hum. "Oh yeah... Well! How about this?" She walked back over to her desk, and put the case away. She then came back over to the bed, and sat down at the foot of the mattress. "If I sing for you, will you sing for me?"

Weiss raised an eyebrow at the taller girl. "You sing?"

She grinned. "You bet I do."

"I never would have thought." The heiress sucked in her bottom lip, and quickly weighed her options. If she didn't sing for the girl, then Yang would never go away, and Weiss wouldn't be able to finish her work. But if she _did_, then her teammate would probably start expecting more from her. She sighed. "If I sing for you, Yang, then you have to promise not to tell anyone... As I've said before, I don't really put on personal concerts, and I don't want anyone getting the idea that you're somehow special to me."

Yang smirked. "I won't tell a soul or any Grimm."

Weiss shook her head. _Classic Yang_. She pushed herself back against her pillow, and set her Grimm Studies book to the side of the bed. "Since it was your idea, you can go first."

Her friend just shrugged. "Sure. I don't see why not."

She adjusted her position on the bed, and straightened her back as she turned away from Weiss. She drew in a deep breath, her violet eyes closing, and started slowly rocking her body to an unheard rhythm. She hummed a couple of quiet, upbeat notes before smiling to herself, and opening her mouth to sing.

_"Dream of anything; I'll make it all come true. Everything you need is all I'll have for you..."_

She continued the rest of the song flawlessly, the lyrics of a peaceful, promising lullaby that reminded Weiss so much of a song her parents had sang to her when she was little. This song, though, felt much more personal to Yang, and as she sang, there was a certain kind of sadness in her voice, despite being all smiles throughout the piece. It shed a different-colored light on the girl than Weiss was used to, this version of her teammate much more mature and composed than that wild, carefree woman she always made herself out to be.

"I... That was..." Weiss gave her an appreciative smile. "I had no idea you could actually sing."

"I'll take that as a compliment, I guess," her friend said.

The young Schnee cleared her throat. "Now, I suppose you would like me to return the favor?"

"Nah, it's fine." Yang flopped back on the other girl's bed, a content smile on her face as she turned her gaze to the deathtrap that hung above them. "I'll take you up on that offer another time."

Weiss rolled her eyes at the blonde's sudden shift in character, reminding herself that this was still just the same old Yang. "Well, thank you for that. You're not bad." _Who am I kidding? She was incredible... But I would never tell the dolt that—her ego is inflated enough as it is._ "Makes me wonder what other hidden talents you've got up those puffy sleeves of yours."

"Eh, not much, considering how short they are," she said jokingly. "I usually only ever sing to Ruby, anyway... I haven't in a while, though, now that she's growing up and doesn't need me as much."

"So that lullaby—?"

"I used to sing it to her when she was little and couldn't fall asleep..." Yang sat up slowly, a small, but sad, smile painting her face. "She'll kill me if I told you, so this is just between the two of us, but Ruby used to have nightmares all the time after our mom died, and singing to her was the only way to get her to sleep."

_Aww..._ Weiss frowned as her teammate's eyes became clouded by the memory, and the taller girl instinctively turned away. "That must've been tough."

Yang let out a long, heavy breath. "Yeah, well, I got used to it... I mean, Ruby's fine, now, so who am I to complain?"

She gave the blonde a tentative look. "But... how are you?"

The brawler sank back into the mattress, her expression hardening as she seemed to contemplate whether or not to tell Weiss what was really on her mind. "I... I'm okay, considering... It's just..." She looked up at Weiss, conflict in her wide, violet eyes, and after what seemed like a lifetime of silence, she just shook her head. "You know what? I'm fine. Nothing to worry about."

Weiss's frown deepened. _She doesn't trust me..._ In an attempt to console the other girl, or at least encourage her not to shrink away, she shifted just a few inches toward Yang. "Contrary to your belief, I'm not going to judge you, Yang... Honestly, I feel as though I can possibly relate."

Yang bit her lip uncertainly, something Weiss had never seen the girl do before. It was definitely different seeing this side of Yang, the more cautious and reserved one who wasn't sure of herself or her words. "Alright... Enlighten me."

She nodded, and drew in a deep breath. "I... lost a parent, too, when I was seven... My father was always so consumed in his work that he didn't really make time for me or my sister after that, and I had to depend on my sister to be there for me constantly... I know it's not the same, but I know I made things difficult for her, especially since she was just eleven at the time, and nowhere near ready to take on the responsibilities she was forced to when our other parent died..."

Her teammate's eyes widened. "Wow... I had no idea."

Weiss just shrugged. "It's amazing what you learn about each other when you're actually willing to let someone in, isn't it?" She let out a long sigh. "Honestly, Yang, I've wanted to talk to you about this for a while, now... I tried to, back in Mountain Glenn, but I couldn't work up the nerve, then... I wasn't sure any of you would understand, or even care, really..."

"Of course we would care." Yang gave her a small smile. "Or, well, I know I care. You're my teammate, so, as frustrating as you can be sometimes, I've still got to have your back."

The heiress smirked. "I'm sure there was a compliment in there somewhere."

She winked. "I wouldn't be me if I didn't tease you every once in a while." She chuckled to herself as she laid back down, and folded her arms behind her head. "Thanks for sharing, though, Weiss... You're right, it wasn't exactly easy taking on all of that responsibility when I was younger. But I wouldn't change a thing about it. I think Ruby and I both turned out alright regardless."

Weiss rolled her eyes. "You're both fine... Just, please, don't tell them what I told you about my sister and my parents... I don't need Ruby's pity or Blake's judgment, and I'd rather we keep this between the two of us."

Yang raised a thin, yellow eyebrow. "What's wrong? Afraid they'll think you've gone soft on me?"

The smaller girl gave her a challenging look. "Is that so hard to believe?"

Yang returned her gaze, vibrant eyes twinkling with a hint of deviousness. "Ha! Yeah, right. The Ice Queen, being nice to _me_? Just admit it, Weiss, even if you _wanted_ to be nice to me and no one else, you wouldn't be able to handle it."

Weiss suddenly felt her smile turn into a frown, and she glanced up at the girl, a tiny pang of hurt welling in her chest from the blonde's brutal brand of humor. "You really don't think I could be nice...? That's... Well, that's very close-minded of you."

"What?" The blonde looked over at Weiss, seemingly shocked by the other girl's less-than-enthusiastic reaction. "No, no, no... That's not what I meant at all! I was, uh..."

She bit her lip, and her face flushed as she turned away. Weiss narrowed her azure eyes, curious as to what her teammate had to say. "Yang? You were what?"

"Well... I was uh... trying to get you to prove me wrong... by saying something nice..." She gave Weiss a bashful smile.

Weiss felt her cheeks start to burn. _That's not how you get someone to be nice..._ _But if proof is what you want..._ She sighed. "Um, well... you fight good?"

"Uh... thanks." Yang grunted at the heiress's feeble attempt of encouragement. She looked over at Weiss again, this time staring a little longer than necessary, and Weiss shifted her position on the bed, beginning to feel a little uncomfortable by the silence.

_What's wrong with her?_ she thought to herself, her heart beginning to race inexplicably as she met the other girl's bright, angst-ridden, violet eyes. _Was my compliment not good enough? No... it was pretty bad. _

After it seemed like a lifetime of silence had passed, Weiss swallowed, and tried one more time to pay Yang a nice compliment.

"You know... you're really one of a kind. And I mean that in a good way." She smiled. "I haven't said it enough, but I'm grateful to have you as a teammate."

Yang's eyes widened, seemingly taken off-guard. "I... thanks... That means a lot to me." She returned Weiss's smile, and seemed to perk up a little as she rolled over onto her side to get a better view of the ice-themed girl. "And you're the best teammate I could ask for. Blake's my partner, but... she's not exactly the most social of people, and Ruby's my sister, but I can't talk to her about that stuff I just told you... Thanks for listening, Weiss."

The heiress grinned, touched by the other girl's encouraging words. It was probably the first time anyone other than Ruby had actually made her feel like she belonged on the team, that she wasn't just a nuisance who got in the way every time she accidentally slipped up. "Thank you... That also means a lot to me."

She turned to face the Grimm Studies book that was still lying closed on her pillow, and she let out a content sigh. "Hey, Yang? Do you mind if we keep this conversation between us? I... I want people to know that I'm glad you're my teammate, but but this other stuff, about my family, and about yours, I kind of just want to keep to myself... and you, of course."

"I... yeah, of course." Yang turned her gaze back toward the hanging bunk above them. "I won't say a word."

Weiss could feel the girl's heat next to her now as she scooted ever-closer to her on the bed, and her stomach began to flutter in a way she wasn't used to as she thought about how close the two were to touching. Instead of turning to look at her, though, Weiss just listened to Yang's slow, steady breathing beside her. "So..." she finally whispered after a few moments of silence, her voice noticeably thinner than usual. "Any idea when Ruby and Blake will be back?"

"Nope. No clue."

"Well... what should we do until they get back?"

"Does it matter?" Yang asked lazily. "Blake won't say anything, and Ruby will just try to tease us as if we're together... which we're not!"

The paler girl let out a hesitant laugh. She couldn't tell by Yang's comment if she was seriously entertaining the idea or not, but for some reason, it didn't bother her as much as it should have. After all, Yang made jokes like that all of the time. "We can't just lay here like this forever, though, can we? I mean, unless you want to, but it's not exactly something I'd imagine you'd consider fun..."

Yang let her gaze wander over to Weiss. "No we can't." A small frown etched across Weiss's face, and Yang immediately mirrored the hurt in the other girl's eyes. "But if we could, then I'd be fine with it. Exciting? Nope... But it's nice."

At that, the heiress smiled, but for some reason, it felt forced. She knew they couldn't stay there forever, even though it would make things so much easier, and so much more bearable. With Yang, Weiss didn't feel like she had to be perfect. She was just Weiss, and she was there, at Beacon Academy, lying next to someone who made all of the trials she had to go through in order to be accepted into that school actually seem worthwhile. "Five more minutes..." she told Yang. "Then we should really consider doing something productive."

"You mean this isn't productive?" the blonde joked. She paused for a moment, seemingly lost in thought. "It's... uh... building... bonds... er... between teammates?"

Weiss smirked at her half-assed excuse. "We're Huntresses-in-Training, though. We should at least be studying or surveying the forests, or doing something less... lazy... than this. But like I said, five more minutes."

"...Ten?"

She just rolled eyes. "...Fine. But that's it." She lifted her arms back underneath her head, and turned her gaze to the bunk hanging dangerously above her head, wondering how she could possibly entertain Yang's interest for another ten minutes. It was a miracle they had even made it that long without some kind of stupid argument.

After a few moments of silence, Weiss felt the girl shift a little closer. She turned to face her, wondering what was on her mind, but too afraid to ask, she just watched her for a while longer, hoping Yang didn't think it was weird. The blonde's eyelids began to droop in relaxation, and Weiss smiled at the serene expression that painted her face. The last time she and Yang were even remotely that close was back in Mountain Glenn, when she, Blake, and Yang stayed up late, laying around a warm fire, and the conversations they'd had that night were ones that would stick with Weiss forever.

_ You're supposed to stay awake... for me..._

"...Hey, Weiss? I'm really glad you let me in... It was totally worth it." The brawler let out a small yawn as she made one final shift, and their bodies were suddenly touching.

Weiss's breath caught in her throat as Yang's long, smooth legs brushed against her petite, fragile frame. She rolled over to fully face the girl, and let out a content sigh. If it were anyone else, Weiss would be shaking like a leaf right then, but with Yang, something about their position, calm and pressed gently together, felt right.

"I'm glad, too," she said after a moment, leaning her head into the crook of Yang's neck. She closed her eyes, and listened to the sound of her teammate's rhythmic breathing. Yang exhaled slowly, and rested her chin gently atop Weiss's soft, white hair.

"Fifteen more minutes..."


	2. Cameras & Mutts

**A/N And now for some Ladybug filler penned by Slayer_ONE to pass the time until the next update (which will probably take a little while longer, so bear with me!) Thanks for all of the reviews and faves so far, you guys are great! :D **

Sometime later, Ruby and Blake returned to their dorm after a long trip to Vale, only to find their other two teammates curled up against each other in Weiss's bed, fast asleep. Ruby glanced from Weiss to her sister, and then back at Blake, a small smirk forming at the corners of her lips.

"They look comfortable, don't they?" she said teasingly as the darker girl walked past her to her own bunk.

"Sure...I prefer my own bunk with a good book, though," Blake replied monotonously as she walked over to the bookshelf to select an aged tome. She laid down on her bed and opened the book. Ruby lowered herself to the rocking chair by the door, and continued to watch her sleeping sister and partner.

"...I'm trying to decide if I should tease them about this when they wake up, or not," the young leader commented aloud before pondering the repercussions, and frowning slightly. _Then again, I don't want Yang to kill me._

The ninja turned a page in her book, expression stoic as ever. "Do whatever you want, Ruby. Just remember who you're dealing with."

"Ha, I'm not afraid of Weiss! Yang on the other hand... Well, I'm still going to tease them. This will make good blackmail someday." Ruby excitedly considered the possibilities.

Blake looked up from her book to gaze quizzically at her leader. "Do you really think your sister of all people would hurt you? I think the overzealous hugs are about as bad as it gets when it comes to you..."

Ruby thought about this for a moment, narrowing her eyes in thought. "Hmm, good point..." She snapped her fingers. "Oooh! I know! I'll just get her to help me blackmail Weiss!"

Blake sighed before returning to her book, and countering, "That might not be the best of ideas. If Yang is sleeping with Weiss and Weiss isn't protesting, then there are probably some mutual feelings of affection that Yang won't try to mess up."

The brunette shrugged. "You read too many romance novels."

"I read just about any genre. You should know that by now."

Ruby crossed her arms over her chest, forgetting how blunt Blake could be at times. She got up from the rocking chair, and walked over to hers and Weiss's side of the room, glancing at the closed Grimm Studies textbook that rested on Weiss's pillow just a few inches from the white girl's head. "Heh. It looks like they were studying at some point... Weiss must've bored Yang to sleep."

Her teammate rolled her eyes, not once letting her attention leave her book. "Maybe, but then why would Weiss fall asleep next to her?"

_Could it be possible that they actually have feelings for each other?_ Ruby cringed at the thought, and immediately pushed the idea from her mind. "Weiss did mention before that she has a sister... Maybe Yang just reminds her of her sister? I mean, I used to curl up with Yang when we were little, so it's not like a big deal, right?" She waited for a moment to see if Blake would respond, but when the other girl just remained silent, Ruby frowned. "Then again, the Schnee family doesn't really seem like the lovey-dovey type..."

"How about you take the pictures now, then ask them what's going on when they wake up?" Blake suggested, a hint of annoyance in her voice as she was evidently becoming tired of debating the subject.

Ruby raised a curious eyebrow, surprised by the suggestion. "You mean... you're actually _allowing_ me to mess with them? Who are you and what did you do with Blake?"

"If you stop scheming then I get silence to read," the darker girl pointed out. "I hardly see how that isn't a win-win situation."

"...Oh." Ruby turned away from her teammate, slightly hurt by Blake's curt explantation, but she kept her thoughts to herself as she reached into the back of her belt where she usually kept her Scroll. She stared down at the device's screen for a moment as she contemplated taking the picture, wondering if it would come back to bite her in the future. _Everything usually does..._ she reminded herself.

Blake sighed from the other side of the room, and Ruby glanced back, meeting the girl's amber, catlike eyes. The darker girl gave her a stern glare, obviously thinking this to be a terrible idea. Ruby just shrugged her off, and turned back to Yang and Weiss, lifting the lens of her Scroll to the sleeping pair. After a few clicks, she tucked it away in her belt, and went back to sit in the rocking chair.

"There," she said as she plopped down in her seat. "Now we just sit here and wait."

Blake continued to read, ignoring the sounds of Ruby's tapping as the younger girl drummed her fingers against the arm of the chair. After a few moments, Blake's eyes hastily escaped the page, and she did a quick scan the room, her expression slowly changing from one of content to paranoia. "Ruby? ….Where's your... pest?"

"Huh?" Ruby met Blake's fidgety gaze, and got up from her chair once more, glancing up at the bunk hanging over Yang's and Weiss's heads, where she had left her corgi earlier that morning. When she didn't see him there, though, an uneasy feeling started to form in her stomach, and she turned back to her teammate. "I... He was _just_ here this morning."

Silence reigned from the ninja as she slowly closed her book, and climbed on top of Yang's bed. Once she had settled into the mattress, she opened her book again, and resumed her reading, trying to remain calm at the thought of that _mutt_ lurking around. "...Not many places he could have gone..." she whispered.

Ruby let out a thoughtful hum. "If I were a dog, where would I go...?"

Blake frowned. "Really? That's _really_ going to be your strategy?"

"Oh! I know!"

Ruby snapped her fingers, and walked swiftly over to the bathroom on the other side of the room. She noticed that the door was slightly cracked, just enough for a little dog to squeeze through. She held out her hands and pushed the door the rest of the way, her heart immediately skipping a beat as she took in the horrendous sight.

"...Blake?" She squeaked, taking a hesitant step into the toilet paper-covered bathroom. "I think I found him..."

The tiny corgi laid nestled in a bed of toilet paper at the base of the toilet, the cardboard paper holder hanging loosely from his muzzle as he peacefully slept. Half of the shower curtain had been pulled from its rings, and was now hanging at an angle over the edge of the tub, tangled in a mess of the thin, white tissues. "This... is... _bad!_"

"What'd he do?" her teammate asked vehemently as she scooted a little closer to the wall, careful not to shake Yang's bed too much, otherwise the books that held it could wane and fall.

"Oh, you know, he just destroyed the whole bathroom..." Ruby said casually as she clenched her fists, and walked over to the dog. She stopped, and hovered over him for a moment, feeling somewhat guilty for leaving Zwei by himself while Yang and Weiss slept, but her disappointment largely outweighed her guilt. _He knows better than this. _"ZWEIIIIII!"

"...Was any of my stuff in there?" Blake asked accusingly as Ruby picked up the dog by its collar, and tossed him out into the bedroom. She started picking up the mound of toilet paper, but stopped when her hand hit something small and thin. She dug the item out from underneath the wad of tissues, and frowned when she noticed the bite marks and missing bristles on the black toothbrush.

"Ummm..." She stuck her head out of the door, and lifted the toothbrush so her teammate could see it. "...This isn't yours, by any chance? 'Cause, um, Zwei ate it..."

Blake let out a low groan. "It... is..." she growled, no longer able to focus on her book. Zwei now had her attention, staring up at the ninja with a look of innocence. She sighed, and looked back up at Ruby. "Do whatever you see fit...though I'm expecting _you_ to buy me a new toothbrush."

"Aww... I was hoping you would yell at him..." Ruby pouted up at Blake. "Usually, Yang's the bad cop, but she's... well, napping..."

The other girl raised both eyebrows, surprised by the cloaked girl's confession. "...You're giving me permission to yell at your dog... that I hate... and you're not going to stop me?"

Her leader winced. "Just go easy on him... He's smaller than you... But yeah, better you than me!"

Blake nearly fell off the bed. _Nearly_. In piecring silence, the cat Faunus glared down at the corgi. After a few moments of holding a compelling staring contest, Blake cleared her throat, readying herself to lash out at the tiny monster who had been causing her so much trouble for the past couple of months. "You _stupid_, _dumb_, _mangy_ mutt!"

Zwei whimpered, his large, puppy-like eyes lowering cautiously to the floor.

"You ruined the bathroom, _and_ my toothbrush! You _disgusting_ little—"

Ruby cut her off by running over to the defenseless dog in a flurry of rose petals. She picked him up off the floor, and shot Blake an offensive glare. "I'm sorry, boy, she didn't mean it. Now, tell her you're sorry and won't ever do it again."

Zwei let out an apologetic cry as someone shifted angrily from Weiss's bunk. Ruby turned her attention to the white and blonde pair, and met Weiss's furious gaze as the heiress sat up in bed.

"Oh... You're awake..." Ruby said sheepishly as she held up Zwei, knowing Weiss couldn't get mad at her if all she saw was the small dog. Yang let out a tired groan, and rolled over to face her sister, her violet eyes blurry with confusion. Ruby let out a hesitant laugh. _This is going to be interesting..._


	3. The Shipping Begins

Yang awakened to the sounds of yelling, and as something shifted beside her, she let out a tired groan, and rolled over to groggily meet the silver, guilt-ridden eyes of her little sister. She sat up, and rubbed the sleep from her eyes as she thought about the wonderful dream she'd just had, one that was completely unexpected, but pleasant in the most surprising of ways. She glanced around the room as she allowed her eyes to adjust to her surroundings, but as soon as she saw the Faunus girl sitting on the top bunk on the other side of the dorm, that familiar _Achieve Men_ poster hanging just behind her, Yang froze.

_Wait... why am I so low to the ground? If that's my bed, then..._

The brawler immediately jerked her head to the right, and locked eyes with the petite, fair-skinned heiress who was sitting so close that Yang could practically feel the smaller girl's body heat radiating between them. She blinked just as Weiss turned away, and directed her attention to the corgi hanging from Ruby's arms.

"Uh..." Yang continued to watch Weiss, even though the girl's crystal-like gaze was already glued intently to someone else. _Did we just sleep next to each other? ...Did that really happen?_

Weiss closed her eyes, and drew in a deep breath. Her eyelids slowly fluttered open just a few seconds later, and moved from the dog to the red-cloaked girl who was still clutching onto him as if it was Ruby's lifetime assignment to protect the corgi from whatever harm should come his way.

"What exactly happened in here?" she asked their leader, a hint of puzzlement in her voice, but Yang wasn't sure if it had more to do with the dog, or their own sleeping arrangements.

Blake finally shifted from the top bunk, and shot the dog a distasteful glare before turning back to the book that laid open in her lap. "Well... we walked in, and found you two asleep. Ruby took pictures, I read my book, and Zwei destroyed the bathroom—_and_ my toothbrush." She flipped a page in her book, more invested in her story than she was in the current topic of conversation. "Ruby had me yell at him, and I thoroughly enjoyed myself until Ruby stepped in, and then you two woke up."

Weiss narrowed her eyes at her partner, paying little-to-no-attention to Blake. "Wait, wait, wait, back up—you did _what_?"

Ruby gave the heiress a tight smile. "I saved Zwei from being yelled at?"

"No, before that."

The brunette let out a nervous laugh, and Yang couldn't help but be amused by her sister's current disposition. "Um, I took a picture of you and Yang sleeping in your bed?" She dropped Zwei to the floor, and the tiny corgi immediately made his way over to Weiss's bed. Yang reached down, and patted his head.

_Cover your ears, Zwei... Weiss is about to explode._

Before Weiss could comment on Ruby's sneaky act, however, her partner held up a hand, and continued to explain herself. "I thought you two looked cute! And I needed blackmail!"

Weiss let out a low groan. "That is the _worst_ excuse I've ever heard."

"I told her not to do it," Blake added bluntly.

Yang turned her gaze from Zwei back to Weiss, a sheepish smile tracing her lips. "Please don't kill my sister... too much..."

Ruby dropped her arms to her sides, and looked up at Blake. "Hey! That's not fair! You gave me permission!"

Weiss was practically fuming, now, and Yang had to hide a smirk as the paler girl's cheeks began to redden in anger. "You... gave her... permission? Of all people, Blake."

The darker girl just turned to Weiss with an arched brow. "I only suggested it so that I could have my silence to read."

Ruby cleared her throat. "Actually, your exact words were—" She met Blake's amber death-stare, and immediately clamped her mouth shut. Yang just chuckled.

"So, let me get this straight..." She glanced up at her sister. "Weiss and I, uh, slept... Then you two came back, meddled, Zwei trashed the bathroom at some point, Blake shouted at him, you stopped her, and now we're here...?"

"He probably destroyed the bathroom while you two were sleeping together," her partner added.

Yang blushed at Blake's phrasing of that last statement. _You make it sound like we were doing something... else._

Ruby tapped her foot impatiently against the dorm's hardwood floor, and Yang turned back to Weiss just as the heiress sucked in her bottom lip. The blonde sank back into one of Weiss's pillows, curious as to what the other girl was thinking. Her thoughts were interrupted by Ruby finally speaking up, however.

"Well, since it was your guys' responsibility to watch Zwei while Blake and I were out, you two get to clean up the bathroom together... and also buy Blake a new toothbrush."

Yang frowned. "Ruby, that's not—" She glanced down at the corgi once more, Zwei's tail wagging rapidly as he beamed up at his owner expectantly. Yang sighed. "I guess you're right..."

The younger girl gave her an accomplished grin as Yang lifted herself to her feet, Zwei running back to Ruby as Yang spun around to face Weiss. A small smile painted her face as she offered the heiress her hand.

Weiss narrowed her eyes slightly at the outstretched hand, and hesitantly started to reach for it. Before their fingers could make contact, however, Weiss turned away, and rolled over to the other side of the bed. She pushed herself up to her feet, keeping her gaze low as she shuffled her heels against the cool floor. "I guess we should get started, then?"

Yang swallowed. "Yeah..." She started for the bathroom, Weiss following slowly behind her, and as soon as she made it to the doorway, Yang stopped in her tracks. She felt something crash into her only about a second later, knocking her slightly off-balance.

"Oof."

Yang turned around, and glanced down at the heiress, who was now rubbing the tip of her nose with her palm. Icy, surprised eyes became narrow slits as the blonde took a step back.

"What was that for?" the smaller girl whined.

Instead of answering, though, Yang just reached for her arm, and pulled the girl over to the doorway, waving her free arm toward the mess that awaited them. A roll of toilet paper had been unraveled, and little bits of tissue were now strewn across the tub, sink, and floor. The shower curtain hung at an angle over the edge of the tub, a bottle of shampoo tipped over with its contents leaking onto the curtain from the open cap. All four of the girls' toothbrushes had been knocked from their holders, but only one seemed to be missing—Blake's.

Weiss's eyes widened in horror at the sight. "Oh my..."

Yang let go of her teammate's arm, and started toward the tub. "Yeah... Well, I'll get the shower fixed if you clean up the toilet paper... Sound good?"

She sighed. "Sure." She walked over to the toilet, and began picking up the slobbery pieces of toilet paper, grimacing as she raveled the tissue around her arm. Yang smirked at the heiress's expression before she turned her own attention to the shower curtain.

_Damn dog_, she thought to herself as she crouched down by the side of the tub, and picked up the open shampoo bottle. She closed the cap, and set it back on the shelf that was built into the wall of the shower. _You sure know how to make yourself feel at home..._

As if on cue, Zwei barked from the bedroom, and Ruby let out a quiet giggle. Behind her, Yang could hear Weiss walking over to the garbage can, and stuffing the toilet paper inside.

"Hey," she murmured, her voice only loud enough for Yang to hear. "That was... nice... today."

Yang's heart immediately began to beat faster at the other girl's words. She bit her lip, and slowly turned to face Weiss. "Yeah, it was... Do you want to do it again sometime?"

Weiss smiled, her cheeks turning a noticeable shade of pink. "I would like that." She walked over to where Yang was crouching, and started peeling the toilet paper off the shower curtain that had yet to be re-hung. "So... after we clean up this mess, and get something to eat, do you want to take a walk in the Forever Fall? I hear it's nice this time of year."

_The Forever Fall is always the same, all year round... But beautiful nonetheless_. Yang gave the girl an affirmative nod, and a bright grin to match the way she felt inside. "I... I'd love to."

She quickly hung the shower curtain back on its rung, and helped Weiss clean up the rest of the toilet paper. The heiress glanced out the bathroom door and into the dorm, a curious expression on her face as she turned back to Yang. "Good. This will give us a chance to talk more without anyone bothering us."

Weiss reached for the last piece of toilet paper just as Yang did the same, and for a moment, their hands gently brushed together. Yang's face felt like it was on fire—and not the kind she usually emitted in her final stage of Semblance—as their eyes met, and she held Weiss's gaze for just a second longer than necessary. The heiress tightened her grip around the final piece of toilet paper, and pulled her hand away.

"W-well, I guess this is it."

"Yeah..." Yang lowered her hand to her side, and stepped back from the tub. "So... do you want to go get that food now? With or without Ruby and Blake?"

Weiss shoved the rest of the toilet paper into the garbage can, and started walking toward the door. "Sounds fine to me."

Yang exited the bathroom, noticing that Blake was on her own bunk again, and that Zwei was nestled between Ruby's legs on the bed just above Weiss's, the younger girl staring intently at the screen of her Scroll. Weiss walked over to her partner, and stepped up on her own bunk to reach Ruby's level.

"We're finished," she announced. "Yang and I are going to go to the dining hall to get something to eat. Are you two coming?"

"We already ate before we came back," Ruby said, her gaze unmoving. "You two must've been asleep for a while."

Weiss furrowed her eyebrows at the Scroll. Yang shook her head impatiently as she started for the door, and pulled it open. "Weiss, come on."

The heiress stepped down from her bed, and walked over to Yang, the blonde holding the door as Weiss exited the room. She followed quickly behind the shorter girl, and soon, they were walking side-by-side to the dining hall, hands occasionally brushing, but never clinging.

When they finally reached the large building, they walked over to their usual table in the back, spotting Pyrrha and Nora from Team JNPR in the two seats where Blake and Ruby usually sat.

Pyrrha greeted them with a smile. "Hello, ladies. Late dinner for you, too?"

Yang took the seat next to Nora, and returned the redhead's smile as Weiss sat down beside Pyrrha on the other side of the table. "It's not that late," Weiss told the armor-clad warrior. "Although I am a little surprised to see both Jaune and Ren absent."

"Oh, they ate earlier so they could check out the Remnant Virtual Warriors tournament in the amphitheater," Pyrrha explained.

Yang met Weiss's gaze from across the table, and she could tell that the two were thinking the same thing. "Ren's into video games?" Yang commented. "Who would've thought?"

Nora groaned. "Yeah. It's _so_ boring."

Yang raised an eyebrow. _And she _doesn't_ like video games?_

"I mean, it's _so_ much more fun to destroy things in real life!"

The blonde smirked. "That makes sense," she thought aloud.

Nora grinned. "Thanks, Yang!" A devious look crossed her face as she glanced from Yang to Weiss. "So... Xiao Long until it's Schnee?"

Yang furrowed her eyebrows. "Huh?"

"Well, I doubt Weiss would take your name, but if you talked it out, then—" the orange-haired girl continued before Yang's cheeks flooded with color, and she began frantically waving her arms to shut the smaller girl up.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, Nora... We're _not_ together."

Nora frowned. "Then why were you two—"

Pyrrha reached across the table, and clamped a hand over her teammate's mouth, preventing Nora from finishing her last sentence. Weiss looked between the two girls, wide-eyed, her own complexion beginning to turn a deep scarlet. "Why were we _what_?"

A muffled response was all Weiss received as Nora spoke directly into Pyrrha's hand. She made no attempt to move the hand as the orange-haired girl began making various hand gestures to help describe her incoherent story.

_Ugh._ Yang grabbed Pyrrha's hand, and removed it from Nora's mouth.

"...and that's what I meant, and why I meant it." Nora beamed proudly at Yang and Weiss, even though both girls were still just as confused—if not more—as they were before.

Weiss gave the other girl a smile, but Yang could tell it was forced. "So... I'm going to go get something to eat. I'll be right back."

Yang started to stand, but Weiss shot her a look, suggesting she wanted to go alone. Yang sighed as she watched Weiss disappear to the front of the dining hall. "Thanks, Nora..."

"Not a problem!" she exclaimed, clearly missing Yang's sarcastic undertone. She leaned in close to the blonde, her teal eyes brimming with a dangerous glint of curiosity. "So how long have you two been together? I'm surprised I didn't catch on sooner."

_Why the hell does she keep asking that?_ _Did Ruby send her those pictures already? _Yang groaned at the thought of her sister spreading the shots she'd taken of her and Weiss sleeping in the same bed together, curled up like just another cute couple. "We're not together..."

Nora frowned just slightly, but it was quickly replaced with a suspicious grin. "Ah, you're right! You're _together-together_! This is so—"

"No, Nora," Yang persisted. "We're not together at all. We just... got closer. That's all."

"Ah..." She slowly started to calm down as she sat back in her seat, and gave Yang a sympathetic smile. "I get it. You don't want to come out... I understand."

Yang resisted the urge to slap her palm to her face. "What? No, that's not—"

"I wouldn't want to publicly announce my affection for Weiss Schnee, either, if I had any," the bubbly ginger continued, and Pyrrha just shifted uncomfortably in her seat, giving Yang an apologetic smile as Nora continued to ramble. "Like, could you imagine what her dad could do to you if he didn't like you? He could kill you, or buy you, or buy you _then_ kill you, or he could kill you then buy your body, or—"

Yang sank in her seat, paling at all of the combinations Nora listed off. Given what she actually knew about Mr. Schnee, Yang wasn't sure how much of that was actually true, but if the way he waved his money around and treated Faunus like they were slaves were any indications of his cruelty, then Yang knew she needed to watch her back while hanging out with his daughter.

Weiss returned to the table a few moments later with a tray of salad and fruit, and she gave Yang a hesitant smile as she sat down, looking between Pyrrha—who had her hand over Nora's mouth, yet again—and Nora—who was still going on about Mr. Schnee. "Do I want to know?" Weiss just asked the redhead as Yang averted her gaze.

"You certainly are talkative today, aren't you?" Pyrrha said instead to her teammate, lowering her hand from the smaller girl's mouth as Nora finally ended her rant.

She took in a deep breath, and turned to Weiss. "We were just talking about what your dad might do to Yang if he doesn't like her, or doesn't think she's right for you." Before either Weiss or Yang could answer, Nora stood, and gave them both a huge grin. "I'm going to go get some pancakes. Come on, Pyrrha."

The tiny ginger left the table, and Pyrrha quickly followed behind her, presumably to make sure Nora didn't stir up any more trouble than she already had. Weiss picked up an apple off her tray, and slowly rotated it in her hands. "Just to be clear, my father doesn't particularly like anyone, at least he doesn't seem to. I personally don't care what he thinks about whomever I choose to associate myself with, because it's likely he would disapprove of them all, anyway."

Yang glanced up at her. "That's... comforting to hear, I guess."

Weiss lowered her apple, and gave the blonde a small smile. "Really? Most people, when I tell them that, kind of just run the other way..."

"Eh, I'm sure we could take him," Yang joked, beginning to perk up. "'We'" being Team RWBY, of course. We'd protect you, and whoever you choose to associate with." She ran her fingers through her hair distractedly, wondering if Weiss thought of her as anything more than just an "associate". _Not that I should care_, she thought to herself. _I'm Yang Xiao Long! I could have my pick of anyone I want, man or woman... _She furrowed her eyebrows. _So why do I feel kind of sad at the thought of not being able to have Weiss?_

Her teammate sighed. "Thanks, Yang. I have no desire to bring a fight to him, though. As long as my father is not around, I shouldn't have to worry about anyone I care about getting hurt."

Yang gave her a short nod, still lost in thought. Pyrrha and Nora returned to the table a moment later, both carrying their own trays filled with pancakes. Nora eyed the food gluttonously, and Pyrrha just rolled her eyes as she watched the smaller girl scarf them down. "What's the matter, Yang?" the redhead asked. "Aren't you going to eat anything?"

"Huh?" She glanced up at Pyrrha, who was now studying her with worried, emerald eyes. "Oh yeah..." She stood from the table, lost in thought, and made her way to the food counter on the other side of the building. She returned with a salad almost identical to Weiss's, and picked at it every so often.

Weiss finished her own food, and moved her hands underneath the table, away from Yang's view. She had her gaze glued to her lap for almost a minute before she looked back up, and turned her attention to Pyrrha and Nora. "So, are you two going to meet your teammates once you're finished, here? I can't imagine watching two boys play a video game can be much fun, but..."

Yang's Scroll sounded from her pocket while Weiss was mid-sentence, and she furrowed her eyebrows as she dropped her fork, and culled out the device. The mailbox icon in the corner of her screen had one new notification, and she opened it, smiling when she realized it was from Weiss. _So that's what she was doing..._

She silently read the message, her heart warming at her teammate's words.

To: Yang

From: Weiss Schnee

Subject: (None)

Hey. Just in case you're wondering... You're one of those people I mentioned earlier that I care about. So don't look so down.

Yang glanced up at Weiss. "Thanks, Princess," she whispered, not loud enough for the heiress to hear, but enough to cement the blonde's gratitude and growing affection for the other girl. She turned her attention back to Nora and Pyrrha just as Nora tried to respond to Weiss's question, her words muffled by the absurd amount of pancakes in her mouth.

"_We're_ going back to the dorm," Pyrrha answered for her instead, earning a groan from her orange-haired teammate.

"Ut aye oh't onna oh ack..."

Pyrrha gave her a challening look. "It's either that, or we spar."

The other girl swallowed. "I'm not afraid!"

Yang pushed her tray into the center of the table, smirking at her friends. "Well, we've got to go. Best of luck with your match." She stood, and walked to the other side of the table, grabbing Weiss's hand and pulling her up with her. Before the heiress could protest, Yang was already leading her away from their table, and out of the dining hall, eager to spend the rest of the afternoon with her teammate.


	4. Forever Falling

As soon as they were outside the building, Weiss released Yang's hand, and slowed her pace. She gave her companion a grateful smile as they started in the direction of the Forever Fall, Weiss's heart beginning to race in excitement as she was finally granted some alone time with her blonde teammate.

"I have _no_ idea where those two got the idea that we're together, but I'm willing to bet your sister has something to do with it," Weiss commented as soon as they were out of earshot of prying bystanders, hoping to explain Nora's more-erratic-than-usual behavior.

Yang's face couldn't be any redder as she hesitantly lifted a hand to the back of her head, and continued to press forward in silence. The forest came into view just a few moments later, and the huge academy started to fade behind them in the background, not a single sign of any lingering Beacon students nearby.

"Is... is it weird that this is probably one of the best days I've had since coming to Beacon?" Weiss asked the brawler, surprised not for the first time that day by some of the words that left her lips.

"I...I don't think so. It's definitely been the best day for me in a long time." Yang smiled warmly at the white warrior, tentatively allowing herself to speak her mind. Weiss glanced behind them as their surroundings became flooded with nothing but tall trees of scarlet and thick rows of green grass sprinkled with beautiful, crunchy leaves. When she could no longer make out the looming architecture of Beacon Academy, Weiss sighed a deep breath of relief, and took a brave step closer to her teammate. Yang's right hand just briefly brushed Weiss's left, but unlike before, when leading her out of the dining hall, the blonde girl did not latch on.

"It's... weird how things seemed to worked out, right? I mean, who would've thought, of all people, that we'd be here, in the middle of the Forever Fall, and—" Weiss paused for a moment as their hands touched once again, but instead of letting her pull away, Weiss quickly intertwined her fingers with Yang's, and gave her a reassuring squeeze. "—holding hands?" she finished, blushing up at the taller girl.

Yang flinched at the sudden contact, but quickly composed herself as she beamed down at Weiss. "I...I know I wouldn't have." She gave her a small squeeze back as they continued through the forest hand-in-hand. "I...Weiss. I want to talk...about us and...what's happened today," she said cautiously, obviously wanting to address the Goliath in the room.

Weiss nodded, knowing it was going to come to this sooner or later. "Yeah... So do I." The heiress gestured with her free hand to a bare patch of grass nearby. "Should we, uh, sit?"

"Yeah." Her teammate hesitated for a moment before removing her combat jacket, and laying it on the ground, inside facing up. "So you don't get grass stains," she explained to Weiss as she sat down next to her signature jacket.

Weiss felt her face flush as she caught herself eyeing Yang's bare shoulders and toned abs. She'd seen Yang in a sleeveless top hundreds of times, as she wore that same orange tank to bed every night, but for some reason, this felt different—this time, something in Weiss's nerves awakened, sending an exhilarating, tingling sensation throughout her entire body. The heiress sucked in her bottom lip before tearing her gaze away, and carefully lowering herself onto the cool leather of Yang's jacket.

"Thank you." She said softly.

Yang grinned in appreciation. "So... Weiss. We both liked today and... I would like it if we did it again sometime," she began. "I... really uh … like..." Her words died out as her confidence seemed to fade, causing Weiss's throat to become dry in anticipation.

She wondered if Yang was going to say the same thing Weiss had been thinking all day. She could lie and tell Yang that she thought of her as nothing more than a good friend and teammate, but it wasn't in Weiss's nature to ever start something, and then stop half-way. With a drawn, deep breath, Weiss met the blonde's bashful, violet gaze.

"I... Ever since that night in Mountain Glenn, I knew you were different," she murmured. "When you said you still weren't sure exactly what you were fighting for, I had a feeling that, deep down, you knew exactly what you wanted, and what you still do... The way you look out for Ruby, and every single one of us on this team, I can tell there's so much more to you than meets the eye, and... well, I started to admire that about you... And, Yang, I think I really like you." Weiss gave her a nervous smile as she quickly spoke, silently praying that Yang would say she felt the same way.

"I..." Yang muttered, evidently stunned.

Weiss bit her lip. "So... to answer your earlier question, yes, I would like to spend more time with you."

The blonde's face lit up like an overexcited child. "As... like my girlfriend? I mean it's fine if we just hang out. We don't _have_ to date to hang out. It'd be nice because we could kiss and, uh, I mean it's not like I want to kiss you. Not to say you're not attractive, because you're really pretty, _but_ that's not why I love—er—like you... I mean, it's a contributing factor, but it's not the only reason. I also like your personality and... I'm going to shut up now..." Yang rambled on before finishing meekly, her blushing cheeks burning as red as her eyes whenever someone made her angry. Her gaze darted to the forest floor, and Weiss could practically feel the other girl's embarrassment radiating through her body.

She blinked up at her, her mind reeling as she tried to take in everything at once. _Girlfriend? s_he thought, the word swirling around inside her head as though it was a completely foreign concept. They'd just started to get along that afternoon, and as wonderful as Yang's proposal sounded, a part of her was frightened of making any lasting commitment. There was only one thing Weiss knew for sure, and that was that she didn't want to lose Yang.

"I..." she mumbled, trying to find the right words to explain how she felt. "I think we should try and see if we can have another day like this... without arguing... before deciding on anything."

"Yeah..." Yang breathed, her voice heavy with disappointment. "That's, uh... probably the best option." She took a deep breath and smiled down at Weiss. "Want to finish this day by just relaxing for a little bit, or are you ready to head home?"

"I..." The heiress didn't want to leave; not yet. She didn't even want to sit there and "just relax". There was still so much she wanted to talk about, to make clear. She reached down for Yang's hand again, which was now resting loosely in her own lap. "...We can still hold hands... And do _this_."

Before she lost her nerve, Weiss lifted herself up to her knees, and raised her free hand to the side of Yang's face. She slowly leaned in, and gingerly pressed her lips to the other girl's cheek, her heart racing as she pulled away just a moment later. "...Is that okay?"

Yang remained completely silent for a few seconds as she seemed to mull over Weiss's kiss. The heiress was just about to speak up, afraid that she had done something wrong, when a large, goofy grin took over her teammate's face. Her bright, yellow locks ignited almost instantaneously, warming herself and Weiss, and the small patch of forest around them. "...Yeah... definitely okay," Yang finally whispered.

Weiss's eyes widened as Yang's body started to heat, her palms and cheeks becoming warmer, but not enough to burn them. Weiss lowered her hand from the brawler's face, but kept the other intertwined with Yang's, suddenly having the urge to run her free hand through her teammate's long, fiery mane, but knowing there was a chance the flames might scald her, she shoved the idea into the back of her mind, and instead, gave the girl a teasing smirk. "Well, aren't you quite the Firebomb?"

The blonde laughed. "Careful Princess, if you flatter me too much then I'll be—" Yang fumbled one-handedly for her aviators, but gave up after several seconds of failing. "—too hot to handle." The smile on Yang's face grew as she finished her joke.

"Oh, you and your jokes." Weiss shook her head at the girl's attempt to be funny, but found herself suppressing a giggle as she leaned back against Yang's shoulder, and pressed her cheek against Yang's warm, smooth skin. _So warm... So comfortable... _

"...We need to do this again, too," Yang said as her Semblance began to fade.

Weiss let out a yawn, Yang's warmth beginning to make her drowsy. She closed her eyes, and smiled to herself as she captured the moment in her mind. "...Don't let me fall asleep, okay?"

"Yeah... we _are_ out in Forever Fall, still. Wouldn't want to attract unwanted attention." Yang kissed Weiss's forehead, the light pressure causing Weiss's heart to flutter. "We'll head home shortly and sleep there... In our own beds, of course."

Weiss let out a sigh of content, and gently lifted Yang's hand to her own chest, holding it graciously over her heart. "Right... home... I just don't want to move just yet..."

"Neither do I." The brawler wrapped her arm around Weiss's shoulders, and they sat like that for a while, Weiss in Yang's arms, more comfortable than she'd been since she'd left her luxurious bed back in Atlas for the tiny bunk in Beacon's dorm. Before long, the sun began to set beyond the horizon, and Yang lightly nudged her with her shoulder. "We should probably head home before it gets dark."

Weiss opened her eyes and looked up at Yang, feeling slightly disheartened. "I suppose you're right..."

"Yeah... I don't want today to end, either," her teammate commented, clearly sensing the heiress's disappointment. "Look on the bright side, though. Tomorrow is just one day closer to the weekend, and then we'll have all the time in the world to hang out like this."

"Of course." Weiss lifted her head off Yang's shoulders and groggily pushed herself up to her feet. She smoothed her hands over the front of her combat skirt a few times before picking up Yang's jacket, and handing it to her. "Do you think Ruby and Blake would have any idea what's going on between us?"

"Well... Blake's comments and Ruby's pictures might mean that they suspect something, but they can't really know for sure... I mean, we don't even know for sure what _this_ is." Yang put on her leather jacket, and brushed some blades of grass off the front. She offered her hand to Weiss, which she gratefully took.

"I don't think Blake was making any suggestive comments," Weiss told her. "I think she just phrases things very, very poorly." She smiled up at Yang, and Yang smiled back, and the two of them headed back toward the school.

The walk back to Beacon was peaceful and quiet. No Grimm were encountered as they made their way back home. Everything was blissful as the school's dorms came into view.

"Hey Weiss?" Yang stopped them just short of their shared room. "Thanks for today. I can't wait to do it again." She placed a quick, chaste kiss on Weiss's lips before swiftly pulling away and opening the door, preventing Weiss from expressing any further thought about the kiss.

Weiss's cheeks instantly flooded with color as she stood in the doorway, stunned. Yang walked swiftly over to her side of the room, and climbed up onto her bunk, attracting her darker-haired teammate's attention.

Blake glanced up at Weiss over her book, arching an eyebrow as Weiss remained frozen in her spot by the door. "Are you feeling alright, Weiss? You have more color than usual." She smirked at Weiss, her words only causing the paler girl's blush to deepen.

"I'm fine! Just... fine." Weiss entered the room, and glanced up at her partner's bunk, only to see that Ruby still had her gaze glued to her Scroll, enthralled in a Create-Your-Own-Grimm App. Weiss reached up to Ruby's bunk to pet a sleeping Zwei, and narrowed her eyes as she turned to the brunette. "You know, you're going to ruin your eyesight if you keep staring at that thing."

"Shhh, I'm concentrating. " Ruby muttered robotically.

Weiss rolled her eyes. "It's a stupid game."

Her leader gasped as she finally peeled her gaze away from the screen, and shot Weiss a threatening glare. "You don't know what you're talking about. This is science!"

_You are truly a geek_, Weiss thought, turning away from Ruby and lowering herself to her bunk. Weiss glanced across the room at Yang, and as soon as their eyes met, Weiss felt her face start to redden again. Yang winked at her before crawling under her blanket, and leaving Weiss to her thoughts.

Weiss grinned to herself as she removed her tiara, and set it on the bookshelf that separated each side of the room. She took her long, snow-white hair out of its side ponytail, and shook it out as she leaned back against her pillow. She reached for her Scroll, and opened up a blank message. The heiress typed quickly, her face flushing as she turned to face the wall.

To: Yang Xiao Long  
From: Weiss Schnee  
Subject:

You don't play fair. Good night, Firebomb.

Yang's bunk illuminated with the light of her Scroll a moment later, and Weiss stole a glance up at her as she awaited the girl's reply. Her own Scroll buzzed shortly after, and she excitedly turned back to its screen.

To: Weiss Schnee  
From: Yang Xiao Long  
Subject:

Sometimes you have to play dirty to win. ;-) Night Princess. 


	5. The Couple Theory

She couldn't stop thinking about the kiss. Although it had been brief, something about the feeling of Weiss's soft, gentle lips against hers had sent a spark through Yang's entire being, and the fact that Weiss didn't seem to hate it just made Yang more determined to make it happen again. But as the week progressed, and Yang and her teammates had been slammed with schoolwork, the blonde found it almost impossible to get a few moments alone with Weiss without anyone suspecting that something was going on.

Now, as she sat in between Blake and Weiss in her final class of the day, watching Professor Goodwitch as she paced back and forth in the front of the room, Yang found herself brainstorming ways to get her petite, beautiful little teammate back in her arms. She lazily doodled random squiggles and scratches on a blank sheet of paper as she tried to pay attention to the lecture, but Single Combat Theory had to be one of the most boring classes that Professor Goodwitch taught. _Thankfully practicals start next week... I can't wait to get into the more active stuff!_

Yang glanced over at Weiss, who was diligently taking notes like the perfect student she was so determined to be. _Look at her concentrating so hard on the lecture, even though I'm sure she already knows the content like the back of her hand..._ The blonde smiled to herself as she turned to her own sheet of paper, and quickly jotted down a question. She then crumpled it into a ball, and turned to face Weiss, who was more or less just a foot away. She let her tongue slip between her lips as she focused on the other girl, and gently tossed the ball, hitting Weiss's ponytail, and landing flawlessly on the desk in front of her.

Weiss blinked as the ball landed in front of her, and she turned to Yang with a look of confusion as she picked it up. The brawler smirked, and gestured for her to unravel the ball. Weiss did as Yang instructed, and flattened out the piece of paper, narrowing her eyes at the query before writing something back, and re-crumpling the ball. She tossed it back at Yang, but instead of landing in front of the blonde like the heiress had obviously intended, the wad hit her in the ear, and fell into her lap. Weiss gasped as Yang let out a quiet laugh, and opened the note.

Yang: _You know what's better than Single Combat Theory?_

Weiss: _What's that?_

Yang grinned as she scrawled her response. _The Couple Theory... Everything's better as a pair, right? That's why we were assigned partners during initiation. _She passed the note this time, not wanting to risk causing a distraction. She turned her gaze back toward the front of the room, ignoring the knowing glance that Blake shot her from her right as she awaited Weiss's next reply.

The wad appeared in front of her a moment later, and she eagerly unraveled it to see what the heiress had to say.

Weiss: _I suppose you're right..._

Yang bit her lip, lifting her pencil to the paper as she wrote down one last question. _So, how about we test that theory? You and me, date tonight? My treat, of course._ She passed the note back, this time butterflies beginning to well in her stomach at the thought of taking Weiss out in public. If her teammate said yes, then Yang already knew of the perfect place to take her, away from anyone who would recognize the Schnee, but not so desolate that the heiress would somehow think Yang was afraid to be seen with her. Because in all honesty, all Yang wanted was to make her attraction to Weiss public, even though she knew Weiss wasn't nearly ready for that step.

It took a few moments for Weiss to respond, and every second felt like an hour as Yang tried to concentrate on the lecture. By the time that same crumpled piece of paper finally found its way in front of her again, Yang was too nervous to actually meet the smaller girl's gaze as she peered down at the note. As soon as she read Weiss's response, all of her anxiety seemed to fade, however, and a huge grin split across her face.

Weiss: _I'm in :)_

Yang sighed in relief, and pocketed the note as she sat back in her seat. As Professor Goodwitch continued to talk about different one-on-one techniques, Yang felt something nudge her in the side, and she turned to Blake, who was watching her expectantly. Yang smirked, and her partner rolled her amber eyes, neither girl needing to use words in order to figure out what the other was saying. Blake knew, but didn't seem to care, and that was all the encouragement Yang needed to continue to pursue the white warrior wholeheartedly.

When class finally ended, Yang packed up her books at record speed, haphazardly scooping them into her arms as she stood from her seat, and waited for Weiss. Blake and Ruby walked around them out of the classroom, and only then did Weiss get out of her seat, and begin walking with Yang toward the front.

"Ready for tonight, Snowflake?" Yang asked with a grin, amused by Weiss's reaction to the new nickname. The heiress quirked an eyebrow, but didn't comment on it. "What?" Yang continued. "This could be a regular occurrence... Friday night date nights, just the two of us."

"Well, first thing's first," Weiss said, clutching her binder to her chest. "I've got to put all of my books away and change out of this uniform." The heiress nodded at Professor Goodwitch as she and Yang walked past her and out of the room, and headed back to their dorm. When they entered the room, they were greeted by Zwei waiting at the foot of the door, ready to escape. Yang instantly caught him, and carried him back to Weiss's bed, where the other girl was setting down her books.

She handed the corgi to Weiss. "Here, hold him while I change. I don't want him sneaking into the bathroom again while our backs our turned."

"Good point. Blake would kill us if we let him destroy another one of her possessions."

Yang chuckled, and walked over to the closet to grab a change of clothes. She quickly stripped her uniform in the bathroom, and tossed it into the team's laundry hamper before changing into her regular combat attire, and exiting the bathroom.

"So..." Weiss started almost immediately as Yang left the bathroom. "Are you going to tell me where we're going?"

"Depends, Snowflake," the blonde answered with a wink. "Do you want a surprise, or not?"

"I... You should know I'm not one for surprises." She lifted the dog off her lap, and let out a sigh as she stood. She crossed her arms over her chest, feigning defeat. "But I guess I can let you have it your way... _this_ time."

Yang couldn't help but laugh. _God, she's adorable when she pretends to be frustrated._ The brawler offered her hand to Weiss. "You gonna change, or what?"

Her teammate just rolled her eyes. "Yes, give me a minute." She took Yang's outstretched hand, her expression softening as soon as their palms made contact, and she let go a moment later, disappearing into the bathroom with her own change of clothes.

Yang sat down with Zwei, reclining back on Weiss's bed, and grinning up at the tiny dog. "You better be good for Ruby and Blake tonight, okay? I don't want anything messing up this night."

The dog wagged his tail excitedly, seeming to understand his owner's request. Weiss returned from the bathroom a few minutes later in her combat skirt, heels, and signature Schnee bolero. Yang lowered the dog, and stood up to meet Weiss.

"Great! Let's go!" She held her hand to Weiss once more, but this time, the heiress ignored it.

"We should wait until we're off-campus before doing that... If we _are_ going off-campus, that is."

"Yeah..." Yang lowered her hand, feeling slightly disheartened. "Yeah, we're heading off-campus." She walked over to the door, and held it open for Weiss.

"I'm sorry," the paler girl said as she passed through the door. "I just don't want anyone to start talking just yet... Not until we've figured _what_, exactly, we are."

Yang nodded. "I understand. Well, come on. We've got to be there by six, and it's already five-thirty." She followed Weiss out of the dorm, and pulled the door closed before Zwei could even attempt to escape. "To Bumblebee!"

"Your motorcycle?" Weiss grinned. "This should be fun."

"Ever ridden one before?" Yang asked her as they started down the hall.

She shook her head. "Nope, but I've seen how you drive that thing... Is it, um, safe?"

The blonde chuckled. "Depends on who's driving it. Don't worry, Snowflake, I have my license, and if it's safe for Ruby, it's safe for you."

Weiss furrowed her eyebrows in curiosity. "So, where is this _snowflake_ coming from?"

Yang grinned. _Good, she noticed. _"I'll tell you over dinner, Snowflake." She winked at the other girl. "It'll give you something to look forward to."

Her cheeks slightly reddened before turning to Yang with a smile. "I'm looking forward to it already."

They continued walking for a while until they finally reached the student parking garage on the other side of the dormitory building. Yang walked over to her beloved motorcycle, and picked up her helmet before hesitating, and slowly turning to Weiss. "Uh... here." She handed her the helmet. "It's the only one I have right now."

Weiss took it, and Yang watched the heiress slide it over her head, putting on her own aviators and mounting the bike as Weiss struggled with the strap of the helmet. Finally, Weiss managed to fasten it into place, and she climbed onto the motorcycle behind Yang, her small arms hesitantly finding their way around the blonde's midsection.

"Hold on tight," Yang instructed with a grin, sticking her keys in the ignition as she felt Weiss's grip tighten around her waist. Bumblebee roared to life, and Weiss jumped slightly at the sudden noise, her muscles tensing against Yang's body. The brawler revved the engine once, and leaned forward, pulling Weiss with her as she kicked off on her bike, and out of Beacon's parking lot.

As they sped down the cliff toward the city of Vale, Yang could feel her teammate press her face into the blonde's shoulders, and Yang couldn't help but smile to herself as Weiss eventually began to relax against her. _I need to take her out more often..._

After about twenty minutes of driving, Yang pulled into a small parking lot in front of a quaint diner. She parked Bumblebee and shut off the engine, looking over her shoulder at the girl buried in her hair. "Well, we're here."


	6. Date Night

Weiss braved a look up at Yang, and let out a relieved sigh. She loosened her arms from Yang's waist, and reached up to remove the helmet, shaking her hair into place as she handed the helmet back to Yang. "Well, that was... a new experience."

Yang offered Weiss her hand as she climbed down from the bike, and she helped the heiress to her feet. As soon as her heels hit the ground, Weiss's heart seemed to fall back into place, and she could breathe comfortably again.

"This is a nice place," she told Yang, giving her a smile as she interlocked her fingers with the brawler's. "Shall we?"

"Yes we shall," Yang said with a smile. She held the door for Weiss, and together, the two entered the small restaurant. "Table for two, please," she requested politely to a woman behind the podium up front.

"There should be a booth available over there," the hostess replied, pointing to an empty booth right next to a window with a great view of Bumblebee. "A waiter will see you shortly."

Yang gave her a curt nod, and led Weiss to the booth where they had been directed. Just as they had taken their seats, a man approached their booth, and set two menus down in the center of the table.

"Hello, can I start you two off with something to drink?" he asked.

"I'll take a Dr. Piper please." Yang answered without much of a second thought. The waiter looked to Weiss, patiently awaiting her order.

Weiss glanced at Yang, then back at the waiter, a tiny smirk nudging the corners of her lips as she decided on a drink. "Schnee Cola, please."

The waiter scribbled down their orders, clearly not recognizing Weiss as he stuffed the tiny notebook into his apron, and headed off to the other side of the building.

"So... how do you like it?" Yang asked after a moment. "Like I said, it isn't like any of the fancy places I'm sure you're used to, but I think it's nice."

Weiss took a moment to scan the restaurant, taking in the building's quiet, somewhat rustic atmosphere, and peaceful surroundings. She noticed that some of the other customers were Faunus, and it pleased her to see humans and Faunus alike being served as equals without any type of conflict. The heiress turned back to Yang, and gave her a satisfied grin. "No, this is very nice. I... I love it."

"That's great to hear." Yang smiled widely, overjoyed that she had made a good decision. "So what do you want to eat?" She picked up her own menu and looked through the options. "Hmm..." _Ribs are too messy, would ruin any possible make out sessions, steak is cleaner and delicious, a salad is healthy but I'm not in the mood for one... _"What do you want? Dinner's on me."

Weiss looked down at her own menu, too embarrassed to tell Yang that she'd actually never eaten out. Back in Atlas, her father and step-mother were always too busy going out for business lunches and dinners with potential SDC investors and clients, and they'd never invited her along, her step-mother always insisting that she'd only ever cause trouble.

Weiss bit her lip after a moment, and turned back to her date. "I'll have whatever you're having."

Yang paused. "Okay..." _Maybe I _should_ get the salad, then._... "Well... should we—"

"Here are your drinks." The waiter said, cutting Yang off as he set the beverages down in front of each of them. "Are you two ready to order?"

"We'll have... boneless barbecue wings, please." _It's something, right? She'll like them... maybe... shit... she'll hate them..._Yang thought worriedly to herself, hoping her choice wouldn't somehow ruin their date before it really even started.

"Okay, I'll be back with your food or for refills." He said before leaving again.

"Okay..." Yang turned to Weiss. "Uh... do you like barbecue wings?"

"Uh, sure!" Weiss told her, only because she'd never actually tried them before. She continued to smile. "Thanks for this, Yang. I really do enjoy spending time with you."

The blonde's cheeks began to redden at the compliment. "I... uh... really? I just figured that you had like fancy dinners and stuff... Huh." _The more you know. Maybe I should have ordered ribs._ "So, we have some time before our food arrives. How do you want to spend it?"

Weiss reached across the table, and took Yang's hands in her own. "Tell me about this _Snowflake_ thing."

Yang grinned back at her. "Like it? I was thinking about it for a while."

Weiss nodded, returning Yang's smile. "...It's a lot nicer than Firebomb. Should I, um, try to come up with something else?"

"No. I love it." Yang gave Weiss's hands a reassuring squeeze. "You came up with it yourself. I came up with Snowflake because you're one of a kind, no two snowflakes are the same, and you're special to me. You can be ice cold to someone one minute, or you can be nice and kind the next. That's why you're my Snowflake. I'm sure you have your reasons for calling me Firebomb, but no matter what they are, they somehow reminded you of me, and that means more than anything."

"I..." Weiss stared at Yang, seemingly speechless. She squeezed the brawler's hands in appreciation, making a promise to herself that she'd find a way to make it up to her later. "That's beautiful, Yang. I really, really appreciate it."

"Ah... it was nothing." A blush flooded Yang's features, something the blonde had realized she'd been doing a lot lately whenever she was in the heiress's presence.

Weiss sighed, and let go of Yang's left hand, resting her right palm underneath her chin. "Tell me something about yourself," she said. "Something no one else knows."

"Well..." Yang paused apprehensively before continuing as she met Weiss's bright, patient gaze. "The reason I keep my hair long is because my mom, Summer, was the only person I let cut my hair, and... I guess I feel that it'd be betraying her by letting someone else do it."

"Really? That's... very honorable of you," Weiss replied before lifting the glass of soda to her lips. She took a small sip, hating the way beverage tasted. Weiss was never one to drink soda, especially not one endorsed by her own father's company, but she had figured Yang might get a kick out of her ordering something named after her family. "Well, I like it long. I always assumed you never cut it because it has something to do with the way your hair emits fire in its final stage of Semblance, but hey, the more you know, right?"

"Well... that might still happen when it's short, but I haven't had it cut in... a long time." Yang felt Weiss squeeze her hand slightly, giving her a tiny boost of Semblance, just enough to warm Yang's touch. The older girl smiled at her new shoulder to lean on. "So... what about you? Anything the illustrious tabloids missed about you or horribly messed up just for publicity?"

"Please, the only thing those tabloids _did_ get right is that I can sing." Weiss watched as Yang lifted her own glass to her lips, and took a long sip of her Dr. Piper. Once finished, Yang stared at the heiress intently, waiting for the other girl to go on. "For one, I was never really a fan of that operatic stuff my step-mother used to make me practice... I'm secretly a Trocadero fan. Winter, my sister, used to get her friends to sneak her copies of all kinds of rock and pop music behind my parents' backs, and she used to play them for me late at night after everyone else went to bed." The smaller girl smiled morosely at the memory. "And it may not seem like it, but the reason I always tie my hair to the side is because I know my step-mother hates it... It's the one thing she never had any control over before I came to Beacon, and once I realized that I could actually get away with it, I kind of decided to make the side ponytail my thing."

"Really? I never expected you to be into rock... And that was really cool of your sister." Yang grinned. "And I love the ponytail. It's one of things that make you unique and special." She gave Weiss a flattering wink.

Weiss beamed up at her. "Yeah, well, don't tell Ruby or Nora I said any of that. I don't want either of them thinking I'm into that weird karaoke stuff... And, thanks. I'm glad you think so."

"Don't worry, your secret's safe with me." Yang chuckled. "Anything else about my pristine snowflake I should know?"

Just as the question left her lips, the waiter returned to their table with the food, and placed two medium-sized plates of barbecued wings in front of each of them. He gave them a smile before turning around, and returning to the kitchen, leaving Yang and Weiss with their entrees.

"Another thing you should know," Weiss began, "is that this is actually my first time ever eating at any kind of restaurant."

"...Uh... have you ever actually eaten boneless barbecue wings? Because... they can get... messy, to say the least."

Weiss glanced down at the plate of food, then back up at Yang, "Uh, no..."

"Oh... Well, it'll probably be a good idea to take off your coat." Yang removed her gloves, scarf, and her own jacket and set them to the side of the booth. "Just so you don't accidentally get anything on it."

Weiss took her advice, and slid off her coat, setting it beside her on the booth. She then grabbed a couple of napkins from the holder on the far side of the table, and folded several over her lap as she had been taught as proper etiquette as a child. Weiss picked up her fork in her left hand, her knife in her right, and stared down at her plate for a few seconds before finally deciding to cut into the small pieces of food.

Yang cracked a smile as she watched Weiss "properly" eat the food. She grabbed one of the wings and popped it into her mouth, chewing happily. _She's SO CUTE! She's just so adorable._

Weiss grinned to herself as she bit into the first piece of chicken, the savory flavor tingling her tastebuds as she let the barbecue sauce sit on her tongue. She glanced up at Yang as she swallowed, furrowing her eyebrows as she noticed Yang picking up the food with her fingers. "Um... Aren't you going to use a fork?"

Yang swallowed the food in her mouth. "Nope. These are actually finger foods, food that you don't need to use a fork to eat. You don't need to use your fingers, though it's the "proper" way to eat them, technically." Yang picked up another wing from her plate, still grinning at Weiss. "See? Just grab it in between your finger and thumb and eat it." The blonde placed the entire piece in her mouth, and started chewing. She waved her sauce-covered hand to Weiss, gesturing for her to give it a try.

"...Finger foods?" Weiss glanced at the blonde's greasy fingers, an uneasy feeling settling in her stomach as she tried to wrap her mind around this eating technique. Weiss set down her eating utensils, and picked up another wing between her index finger and thumb, as Yang had demonstrated just a moment earlier. She tried to ignore the sticky texture against her fingertips as she popped the food into her mouth. She quickly wiped away the sauce with a napkin as she swallowed, and gave Yang a victorious grin. "Don't think for a second you're touching me with those hands until you've washed them." she teased her, reaching for another wing.

"Don't worry, Snowflake." She unceremoniously popped her fingers into her mouth and licked them clean of the delicious sauce, removing them spotlessly, save for saliva. Yang reached for another wing on her plate. "I don't waste." She chuckled at the incredulous look Weiss gave her. The two finished eating, making small talk here and there about their likes, dislikes, and goals for the future. Time passed quickly, and before they knew it, both of the plates were empty, and their stomachs and hearts were full. The waiter returned with the check, and Yang snatched it from him before Weiss could take a peek at the bill.

"Like I said, dinner's on me." She smiled as she looked at the bill. _Nothing too terrible._ She glanced up at Weiss. "Go out to Bumblebee, I'll pay and meet you there."

Weiss gathered her coat from the booth, and slid her arms through it one at a time, watching with a smile as Yang strutted toward the front of the diner. She left the booth, and headed outside to the parking lot, propping herself against the colorful bike as she waits for her date to return.

Yang paid for their dinner and left the waiter a generous tip just because she was in such a great mood. She returned to the table to collect her belongings, and made her way outside to her teammate. "So... did you have a good night?"

Weiss's face lit up as soon as she saw Yang coming her way, and she finally decided how she was going to thank her. As soon as Yang reached Bumblebee, Weiss stood, and took the girl by the hands. She pulled Yang into her with all of her strength, and pressed her lips passionately against the brawler's, breathing in her air and causing Yang's heart to do a somersault in her chest.

Yang's violet eyes widened in shock before fluttering shut as she reciprocated the kiss. Small flames began to emit from her body in excitement, and she loved the feeling that Weiss could make her react in such a way. _Best night ever._

After a long, beautiful moment, they parted, and both girls' hearts felt as though they were racing a mile a minute. Weiss held the blonde's longing gaze for what seemed like a lifetime before she finally opened her mouth to speak.

"Thank you. For everything." She said with a smile.

"Not a problem, Snowflake." Yang smiled lovingly down at Weiss. "...so... does this mean...?" She trailed off, leaving the question unfinished, though they both knew what it meant.

"I..." Weiss gave her an apologetic smile. "Yang, I... I _really, really_ like you. And I want to be together. But I have a lot I need to figure out before I can consider making any real commitment... I... I know it's a lot to ask, but, can you try to keep this under the radar for me, at least for now? I promise you it won't be a forever thing."

"I uh...yeah..." Yang turned back to Bumblebee, hiding her disappointment. "Yeah..." She climbed aboard her motorcycle and handed Weiss the helmet. Before Weiss put it on, Yang gently grabbed her wrist. "Wait..."

She reached up and removed Weiss's hair pin, and let her hair flow freely around the heiress's shoulders. She smiled at her in admiration. "It'll be more comfortable... and it looks better," she said as she released Weiss's wrist, and held out the pin.

Weiss stood there, helmet in hands, seemingly lost. She mustered a smile as she took back her tiara, and stuffed it into the pouch on the back of her belt. "Thanks. I'll remember that." She slid the helmet over her head, and climbed onto the bike behind Yang, gently wrapping her arms around Yang's waist. Yang leaned forward, inserting the keys into the ignition, and revving Bumblebee to life.

"Love ya, Snowflake," Yang whispered, the roar of the engine drowning any reply from the petite girl against her back. She tore off into the street, and started for Beacon, her heart feeling as though it had just been ripped out of her chest and stomped on.


	7. Making It Work

When the girls finally made it back to Beacon, Yang pulled into the student garage, and parked Bumblebee in its usual spot. Weiss lowered her arms from the blonde's waist, and lifted her hands to the helmet, slowly taking it off, and handing it back to Yang.

"Thanks again," she said with a smile, hoping to get her teammate to cheer up a little. "I mean it. I had a great night."

"Yeah... so did I..." Yang shrugged. "I wish we could do it again sometime."

Weiss furrowed her eyebrows, slightly puzzled by the girl's implication. "Yang, I didn't mean we couldn't date... I just don't want to label us anything until I've had some time to talk to my family."

Yang turned around slowly to face her. "So... we'd be girlfriends, but _not_ girlfriends? Like, we wouldn't date other people, right?"

"I'm not going to date anyone else," Weiss told her, giving her a small smile. "But I'm not going to stop you if you decide that's what you want... But I'd rather it just be you and me."

The blonde broke into an excited grin. "Yes! I, uh... I mean, I'd love to."

Weiss's smile widened, and she pulled Yang into a quick embrace. "Good. I'm glad you're my only one."

"I'm glad you'll be my only one, too." Yang gently pulled away. "So... what do you need to figure out? Maybe I can help."

They started back toward the school, and Weiss's smile began to fade as she thought about all of the possible horrible outcomes of telling her parents that she was dating a girl. "Well, for one, I have to somehow find a way to tell my father that I'm with a woman without making him lose his temper... My step-mother doesn't exactly take to _alternative_ lifestyles very well, and when she's not happy, my father isn't happy... If I'm not careful, I could lose my title as heiress..."

"Well..." Yang looked up pointedly in thought. "You could introduce me, and then I can try getting on his good side. If he doesn't hate me, then that's good, right?"

"I..." The heiress sighed. "I don't see how anyone couldn't like you, Yang. And contrary to most people's beliefs, my father is actually very easy to please... It's just _her_... No matter how close you get to my father, if my step-mother disapproves, which I know she will, then it could be enough to scare my father into taking away my title... She thinks the face of the Schnee Dust Company has to be absolutely perfect and composed, and uncontroversial in any way, shape or form... Am I making sense?"

Yang nodded. "Yeah, I think so... Your step-mother's close-minded and she'll have your dad take away your inheritance if she finds out you're a lesbian. Right?"

Weiss immediately winced at that word. "I'm not saying I'm _not_ one, but I'm not saying I _am_... But, basically, yes, my step-mother is very, very close-minded. I don't know for a fact she'll try to take away my inheritance, but she's already taken it from my sister for something incredibly dumb, and so I have to tread lightly."

They finally reached the dormitories, and Weiss started to feel a little saddened that the night was already quickly coming to an end. She took Yang's hand, and gave it a gentle squeeze.

"I'm going to call my sister as I can work up the nerve. I'm going to ask her for her opinion, and see if there's any way she may be able to help me out."

"Well, I'm here for you no matter what." Yang smiled at the smaller girl, and leaned in to give her a short, innocent peck on the lips. "I hope your sister understands, and is willing to help."

_I hope so, too..._ Weiss beamed up at her. "So, we can tell Ruby, if you want. You know, since she'll probably figure it out, anyway. I'm sure Blake wouldn't care less... Just don't tell Team JNPR, because those guys can't keep a secret to save their lives..."

"It's your secret," Yang told her. "I don't really care who knows about us, but because you do, I'll keep quiet until you've had a chance to figure things out... And I agree with you about JNPR, by the way. After Jaune nearly spilled you-know-what about you-know-who, I thought he was going to be killed on the spot."

Weiss lifted a hand to the back of her head, and gave Yang a tight smile. "Yeah... Nora seems to be interested in our relationship, though, for whatever reason... I don't know what it is about these students, and their need to stick their noses into everything."

"Yeah... Then again, we _were_ the first-year team who decided to stick their noses into that whole White Fang debacle, so we're ones to talk."

"That's different... Ruby got into it with Torchwick before she even started attending Beacon, as did Blake with the White Fang, and you with Junior... Actually, I'm the only one who really got myself involved without prior knowledge or circumstance..." She laughed at the irony of the situation. "I guess I'm one to talk!"

Yang chuckled. "Yeah, but I have different reasons for my meeting with Junior... Less _selfless_ reasons." Her smile slightly faded.

"It's okay," the heiress said, sensing this was difficult for Yang to talk about. "Whatever the reasons, I'm sure they were all with good intentions."

The blonde lowered her gaze. "They weren't. But thanks, anyway."

Weiss could feel Yang slipping away as she untangled their fingers, and dropped her hand back to her side. She held open the door to the dormitory building, and Weiss gave her an appreciative nod as she passed through. She waited for Yang in the hallway, wondering if there was anything she could say or do to cheer her up.

"You know, Yang, if there's one thing I've learned about you, it's that you would do anything for the people you care about," she said with a genuine smile. "And that makes you a good person in my book, no matter what happened in the past."

Yang returned her smile. "Thanks, Weiss." She ruffled the heiress's hair, causing her expression to become disgruntled.

"Hey." They turned down the hall, and started to walk toward their dorm. Just as they were about to reach their room, Weiss stopped, and looked up at Yang. "Come with me for a minute. I don't want to go back just yet."

"Neither do I," her friend agreed. "What do you want to do? I'm up for anything Xiao Long as it's with you."

Weiss rolled her eyes endearingly at the pun, and gently wrapped her hand around Yang's wrist. She led her past their dorm room and toward the communal student bathrooms, which were rarely ever in use that time of night. She checked to make sure the bathroom was empty before leading Yang back toward the showers, and into an empty stall.

"No one should find us here," she whispered, reaching up, and wrapping her arms around the back of the brawler's neck.

Yang gave her a mischievous grin, seeming to read her mind as she locked her strong arms around Weiss's waist, and pulled her close. Weiss's heart began to race as she could feel the other girl's body heat radiate against hers, her breathing slow and ragged. She leaned into Yang, and fervently pressed their lips together, smiling into the kiss as the blonde eagerly reciprocated.

After a few minutes of passionately smacking each other's lips, Weiss felt a soft nibble on her lower lip, and she let out a quiet moan as she slowly opened her mouth for teammate to enter. Yang tilted her head to get better access as her tongue slithered in around Weiss's, and the two appendages began to dance in a rough battle for dominance. Weiss drew in a hot, shaky breath through her nose as she slid her fingers underneath the back of Yang's scarf, the brawler's skin beginning to heat against Weiss's as the excitement seemed to jump-start her Semblance.

_Feels... so... good,_ she thought to herself as Yang traced steady fingers up Weiss's spine, sending a shiver throughout her small body. Soon, Yang's Aura became too warm to bear, and although it nearly broke her heart, Weiss had to force herself to pull away. She breathed heavily as she gazed up into the blonde's glistening, lustful eyes.

"You need to work on controlling your Aura," she whispered to Yang as soon as she regained composure. "So we can do more of this, and for longer."

"I... uh," Yang panted, small flames flickering across her body. "Sorry..." Her face began to redden, and soon, as the flames died out, any last hint of her Semblance quickly being butchered by her evident embarrassment.

Weiss gave her a light peck on the cheek, and smiled up at her. "It's okay. We'll work on it... This was a lot of fun."

"Yeah, but I ruined it." She shrugged.

"You didn't ruin anything," the heiress assured her, reaching for Yang's hands. "We've got all weekend to figure this out."

Yang lifted her gaze, and gave Weiss a short nod. "Okay... We'll figure this out together."

Weiss grinned, and gently squeezed Yang's hands before letting them go. "So, we should probably head back. The sooner we go to sleep, the sooner we can pick this up again tomorrow."

"I suppose." They walked back to their dorm, and stopped just outside of the door. Yang swiftly leaned down and kissed Weiss's forehead before she opened the door, and gestured for the other girl to enter. "After you, Snowflake."

"Thank you." Weiss gave her a grateful smile before stepping into the dark room, and finding Ruby and Blake already in their beds for the night. Yang and Weiss took turns getting changed in the bathroom, and climbed into their own, separate bunks, both feeling giddy and content. Weiss lifted her arms behind her head as she stared up at the hanging bunk above her, wondering just how she was going to go about talking to her sister. She knew it wouldn't be an easy conversation, but it was one she was more than willing to have if it meant there even being a chance that she and Yang could remain happily together.

* * *

The next morning, Weiss awoke before the sun had even begun to rise above the horizon, her heart and mind swirling with mixed emotions as she glanced up at the top bunk on the other side of the room. Yang was still asleep, a tangled mess of golden locks and cotton sheets, and Weiss couldn't help but wonder how someone so kind and careful could also be so... _dorky_. She smiled to herself as she got out of bed, and quietly changed into her usual combat attire.

Although it was still fairly early at Beacon, there was a significant-enough time difference in Atlas that she knew her sister would already be awake. She wanted to talk to Winter while everything around her was still calm and quiet, and she didn't have to worry about one of her teammates interrupting the call or making her feel more nervous than she already was. As soon as she had emerged from the bathroom, Weiss walked back over to her bed, and picked up her Scroll from the bookshelf that separated the bunks. She searched her contacts until she found the number she was looking for, and with a hesitant breath, she pressed _call_.

The Scroll rang three times before the dial tone came to a halt, and a professional, feminine voice answered on the other end. "Schnee World Headquarters, how may I direct your call?"

Weiss cleared her throat, and mustered her best smile into the receiver, even though she knew the other person could not see her. "Winter? Hey, it's Weiss."

"Weiss? Good morning!" her sister exclaimed. "What do I owe for this unexpected call?"

"I... I was wondering if I'd be able to ask you for some advice," she practically whispered into the device, this having been the first time she'd spoken to her sister on anything less than a professional level in almost four years.

Winter let out a contemplative hum. "Are you positive I would be the most appropriate person to contact?"

"Yes, I'm certain." Weiss bit her lip. "See, there's something very important I need to discuss with our father, but I was hoping to get your opinion on how to go about doing it."

"You've got my attention... What is the subject you wish to discuss with Father, yet fear his disapproval enough that you want to ensure that you do so correctly?"

Weiss furrowed her eyebrows at her sister's formal, almost robotic speech, and considered for a second just hanging up. But she knew this was something she had to. "Can you please stop talking like that? It's just me—you don't have to pretend to be so _perfect_."

Her sister sighed. "My apologies, Weiss, but it isn't _just_ you. I don't know who may or may not be listening in on this call over in your dorm. So I'm sorry to say that I must keep this brief, and I suggest you do the same."

The heiress tensed at the thought of either of their parents listening in, but she decided that they were probably both too busy at the moment, and that she was probably safe for the time-being. "Well, it's not _Father_ I'm worried about, per-say, but our step-mother, on the other hand..." She closed her eyes, and took a deep breath. "I kind of started seeing someone, I know for a fact that she won't approve, which means Father probably won't, either... I just... I need to find the best way to break it to him before word starts to get around."

"That's not saying much, Weiss. I doubt either of our parents would approve of anyone they themselves didn't hand-pick."

Weiss let out a hesitant laugh. "Yeah, but I have a feeling they'll more than just vocalize their disapproval of this one..."

"Oh, really?" Winter said, curiosity lacing her voice. "Do tell what makes this _boy_ so different from all the others."

_She totally knows,_ Weiss thought to herself, noticing how her sister put a teasing emphasis on the word "boy". _Maybe she won't judge me... too much._ She opened her eyes, and glanced down at her Scroll, the timer on her call counting down the seconds. "I... it's, uh, not a boy..."

The other end suddenly went silent. If it wasn't for the timer constantly blinking across the screen, Weiss would've thought her sister had hung up, but she knew that it was going to take a few moments for the girl to process what Weiss had just confessed. Finally, about thirty seconds later, Winter finally let out a deep breath, and her voice, calm but stern, could be heard through the receiver once more.

"I should have figured as much. You'd never be this worried if it were a male you were after. So is that it? You just need to know how to bring it up to Father?"

Weiss blinked, somewhat shocked by how well Winter seemed to be taking this. "Precisely..."

"Good. Because the best advice I can give you is to forget this girl."

_There it is..._ Weiss swallowed, and sank back against her pillows, waiting for her sister to continue. This was almost exactly what Weiss had been expecting to hear, but it still didn't make her feel any better. In fact, it only made her feel worse. There was no way she was ready to give up on Yang just yet.

"Distance yourself from her as much as possible," Winter advised. "The further you are, the easier it will be to forget your feelings for her. We can't be certain of what Father would do if he ever found out about this, but no matter how much cushion either of us puts down, it will still be just as heinous to our step-mother."

"I... Winter, I can't just forget about her." She let her gaze wander back to Yang, her heart becoming heavy at the thought of having to erase her from her life. She was more than just a teammate to Weiss, now; more than just a friend. "...She's my teammate."

"Shit." Weiss flinched at the unusual profanity leaving her sister's lips. It was obvious that Weiss had taken Winter off-guard, and even more so that the older girl had no true idea how to help her in this situation. "I... If Father finds out then he might revoke your status."

Weiss could feel her throat start to tighten the way it did when she was almost on the verge of tears. What was it about Yang that made Weiss want her so much? Why was it so hard to just accept what she couldn't have, and move on? _No... I can't lose her..._

She exhaled slowly and shakily. "Winter, please... You have to find a way to help me... I know it's not going to be easy, but if there's anyone who can get through to our father, it's you."

Winter sighed. "Okay... I'll help. I'll try to schedule a day that is the least-stressful for him, and if he's in a good mood, then it should be easier to talk to him. You'll want to broach the subject casually—if he suspects that you're worried, then he'll ensure your fears are justified no matter what, but you know that already. If you can, try to ensure him that this is the best course of action for both yourself _and_ the company, because believe me, he'll take that into account. And most importantly, don't let him see any cracks in your presentation. You're a Schnee, and Schnees are born confident."

_Best course of action for the company?_ Weiss swallowed, realizing that this would be much more than she'd originally thought. She wasn't sure how she would convince her father that being with Yang was good for the company, but she was determined to figure it out. Yang was a smooth-talker, and if there was one thing Weiss's father appreciated, it was a well-thought out story.

"I... I'll take that all into consideration. Thank you, Winter."

"You're welcome, Weissy."

Weiss's lips turned upward into a smile at the mention of her childhood nickname. She was glad she finally decided to give her sister a call. "I suppose you have to go?"

"I should. I need to reschedule a few meetings and make a day for you. You know, if everything goes right, I'll be doing this for you one day." She cleared her throat. "Have a pleasant day, Weiss. I hope that our discussion has eased your situation... Love you."

"You know I'd rather it be you who runs the company," Weiss told her sadly. She stood up from her bed. "But I appreciate it. Love you, too."

She hung up, and set her Scroll back on the bookshelf, stretching her arms above her head as she took a look around the dimly-lit room. _Everything's going to be okay, Weiss. _

About an hour later, Weiss was sitting in her bed again, working on some classwork when she heard a yawn sound from Yang's bunk. She glanced up at the blonde, and smiled as she watched the girl groggily stretch her arms over her head.

"Good morning."

"You're up early," Yang commented, her lilac eyes suddenly brightening as she met my gaze. "Who are you, and what have you done with my Snowflake?" She crawled out of her bed, and hopped dropped down to the floor, landing on her feet with a quiet thud.

Weiss nodded. "I had a nice little chat with my sister."

"Oh? What about?"

The smaller girl crossed her right leg over her left, and began to rhythmically tap her fingers against her bare knee. "Well, she says she's going to help me talk to my father."

"That's great!" Yang exclaimed with a grin. A groan sounded from the bunk above Weiss, and a pillow came flying down, knocking the brawler on her butt.

"It's too early," Ruby muttered. "Go back to bed..."

Yang rolled her eyes as Ruby retreated back into her fort of cloth. "So what's the plan?" she asked Weiss, still in her position on the floor.

"She's going to set up a meeting with my father when he's not too stressed from work, and I'm going to try to find a way to break the news to him as gently as possible... So, I've definitely got a lot of thinking to do." Weiss smiled down at her, and let out a content sigh. "But it's a start."

"Yeah... running a massive corporation could be pretty stressful, I guess." Yang stood up, and sat back down next to Weiss on the bed. She draped an arm around the girl's shoulders, and held her tight. "I'm sure you'll figure something out, and with your sister helping you, I'm sure you'll get through to your dad."

"We can only hope." Weiss stifled a yawn, and leaned back against Yang's strong shoulders, no longer caring that Ruby and Blake were still present in the dorm. "Hey... will you lay with me for a little while? I didn't get much sleep last night."

Yang smiled. "Absolutely."

Weiss removed her tiara from her hair, and placed it on the shelf next to her Scroll. Yang watched her with a hopeful look as the heiress pulled her long, ivory hair out of its ponytail, and shook it loosely over her shoulders. "If I recall, I believe you said something about liking my hair better when it's down?"

Yang nodded, and Weiss grinned as she moved to the other side of the bed, turning toward the wall as Yang laid down beside her, her body heat keeping the smaller girl warm. She wrapped her arms around Weiss's waist, and pulled her close. "Thanks, Weiss... for everything."

Weiss lifted her right arm, and rested it gently over Yang's, intertwining their fingers, and giving her teammate's hand a light squeeze. "No, Yang, thank you..." She closed her eyes, and let out a pleasant hum, glad that it was a Saturday; right then, she and Yang had all of the time in the world, and Weiss wouldn't have wanted to spend it any other way.


	8. Virtual Bonding

Two weeks later, Weiss and Yang's relationship was still going strong. Although they hadn't exactly come out to their teammates, Blake and Ruby had eventually caught on, or at least grown accustomed to seeing the two with each other more often than they weren't. Ruby awoke late one morning—later than usual—to a quiet dorm, and she began her usual morning ritual by hopping out of her bed, and creating a soft thud as she hit the floor.

"Good Morning Team—" the young brunette began with a grin as she looked around, but her smile quickly faded when she realized her other teammates had already risen, Blake reading a book, as always, while Weiss and Yang chatted quietly on the bunk below Ruby's. "Oh, everyone's awake... Anyway, I was thinking that we could—"

"Uh... actually Ruby. Weiss and I were planning on heading out together for some training in the Forever Fall," Yang interrupted her sister before the girl could even finish, hoping to let her down easily.

"Great! We can all get practice as a team!" Ruby declared excitedly, adapting to their new plans.

Blake sighed at her leader's naivety. "I believe Yang meant that she and Weiss were planning on practicing with each other." Ruby looked at Blake blankly, not understanding what her teammate was getting at. "In the forest," the Faunus clarified, only for the younger girl to just blink back at her in confusion. "Without us there," Blake finished.

"Ohhhhh..." Ruby looked over at Weiss and Yang, feeling slightly neglected as both her partner and her sister had left her out of their plans.

"Yeah... You can come next time we head out," Yang tried to offer, only for her sister to reply with silence. Yang looked over at Weiss, a pleading look in her violet eyes. "Can she come?" she whispered, loud enough for Ruby to still hear.

Weiss looked from Yang to Ruby, chewing her bottom lip for what seemed like forever before she finally mustered the smallest of smiles. "Suuure," she drew out, shifting her gaze to Blake. "Are you coming, too?"

Blake glanced up from her book. "It depends on what type of training it is."

Weiss turned back to Yang, but the blonde only shrugged, once again leaving Weiss to figure something out. "I thought we could work on Dust today. All three of you are so accustomed to just using your Dust rounds that you kind of just rely on me for all of the elemental attacks, so I thought why not have all of us learn to use the raw stuff, should it ever come in handy?" Weiss told the ninja, hoping her answer sufficed.

"Thank you but I think it'd be best if I stayed," Blake replied before returning to her book, focusing on the pages in front of her rather than her teammates. "Learning from a professor would be safer and easier, but if you think you can handle those two, then I wish you good luck."

"Hey, I'm safe!" Weiss turned back to Ruby and Yang. "You guys trust me, right?"

"Maybe you should leave the Burn Dust here?" Ruby said, cracking a smirk. "So you don't set the forest on fire like last time?"

Weiss narrowed her eyes at her partner. "That was _your_ fault, last I recall. "

"Weiss, I thought we were over this," Ruby just countered, crossing her arms.

The heiress sighed. "We are. I'm just saying. But, if it bothers you that much, I'll leave the Burn Dust here."

"Fire doesn't bother _me_," Yang interjected with a grin. "In fact, I don't mind it at all."

Weiss smiled at the comment, and Ruby was surprised once again by how much the girl had changed in the past couple of weeks since spending more time with Yang. "Good, that's settled, then," Weiss said, clapping her hands together authoritatively. "Let's go the locker room and gather our combat gear."

Ruby nodded, excited to get back to her beloved Crescent Rose while Yang smiled in agreement. They all quickly changed out of their pajamas, and then the three of them headed out, leaving Blake to read in peace. The trio set out to the Forever Fall, weapons on hand, and Weiss admired the scenery as she, Ruby, and Yang walked side-by-side.

"Hey, Weiss. Just how far are we going out?" Ruby asked curiously as they tread deeper into the forest.

Weiss turned to her partner, and gave her a half-smile. "Just a little farther. There should be a creek nearby, you know, in case anything goes wrong."

"You brought the Burn Dust, didn't you?" Ruby asked tentatively, causing Weiss to roll her eyes as they continued forward, the sound of a running stream beginning to echo in the distance.

"I'm not one to just pick and choose. When I do something, I go all out," Weiss informed her.

"Ah, it'll be fine," Yang assured them both. "She hasn't burnt down Forever Fall yet, at least." She immediately grinned as Ruby and Weiss looked at her, unamused.

"There's a first time for everything." Ruby reminded her sister.

Weiss shook her head nonchalantly as they reached the stream. She carefully unsheathed Myrtenaster, and leaned it against the base of a tall oak. "There's also a _last_ time for everything, and back in the Emerald Forest was, and will forever be, the _last_ time I mishandled Dust."

"You say that now..." Ruby trailed, off causing Weiss to give her an irritated glare.

"Do you want to train, or not?"

"Yeah!" Yang declared, not even giving Ruby enough time to reconsider as the blonde readied up Ember Celica, uncoiling the armor around her forearms.

"Great!" Weiss beamed at Yang as she reached into the pouch on the back of her belt, and pulled out two long cartridges of Dust, each lined with 10 vials of different elemental properties. Weiss handed them to Yang and Ruby, then picked up Myrtenaster in her left hand. "Now, before you load your weapons, do either of you have any questions on which properties belong to each type of Dust?"

"Nope! Let's get started! " Yang tossed the two strands in the air as she loaded them.

"Let's do this!" Ruby said with enthusiasm. Weiss bit her bottom lip as she examined the area, looking for a good target to practice on as her teammates finished loading their weapons. Weiss spotted a tree stump a few feet away that had various slashes and carvings in the bark from previous students' lessons. She smiled, and aimed her rapier at the stump.

"Alright, so, we'll be using this as our target for today," she informed them. The heiress glanced at her teammates once more, and gave them a confident grin. "First, my personal favorite, let's try some Ice. Ruby, can you use the Ice Flower combination to create a barrier around the stump? I'll use my glyphs to direct you, but the Dust action is all yours."

Ruby took aim at the tree stump. Yang silently cheered Ruby on, evident as to how Yang fist pumped as Ruby pulled the trigger several times, ice erupting around the butchered tree. As the brunette shot her weapon, Weiss summoned a glyph to direct her strikes, smiling in accomplishment as the ice formed and hardened around the target. "Psh, easy," Ruby said cockily.

Weiss let out a satisfied sigh. "That was good! Okay, Yang, now it's your turn. Blast through the ice with some Burn Dust."

"On it." Yang leaped at the frozen stump, and struck it, her fist flashing forward like a fiery bolt of lightning. The ice was quick to explode outward as it broke apart and melted. Yang looked around the cloud of quickly-dispersing steam. "Did I do it right?" she asked uncertainly.

The heiress just grinned. "Yeah, that was great!" She turned to both of her teammates. "See? You two just managed to knock out two different combos without me!"

Ruby crossed her arms. "Hey, wait a minute... Are you only teaching us how to use Dust so you can sit back while we do all the work?"

Weiss furrowed her eyebrows at the accusation. "What? No! Of course not! Besides, I'm too good to be replaced!"

"We'd never want to replace you," Yang commented with a wink. She smirked in satisfaction as the paler girl's face suddenly reddened. "So are there any other Dust types you want to try out?"

"Hmmm... Wind would work well with the final stage of your Semblance, but it wouldn't do much for Ruby since she's already got her speed... Perhaps some Lightning?" Weiss suggested.

"I could try using Ice Dust." Yang offered.

"Alright, but... we should try something different, so it doesn't become too redundant." Weiss stepped out of the way of the stump, and walked back over to the rock by the creek. She sat down, and gave Yang a small smile. "Surprise me!"

Yang grinned at Weiss's statement. The brawler loaded the rounds, and sprinted at the tree. She shot down at the ground, creating a sheet of ice that she then skated on toward a tree. She then upper-cut the stump, which caused it to freeze upwards into a solid, tree-shaped sculpture.

Weiss blinked at the fragile, serene display of ice before her, awestruck. Yang winked back at Weiss once again as she skated toward them, and took her sister by the hands. She dragged Ruby into the center of the makeshift rink, the younger girl laughing as the two skated across the ice, forgetting all about their training session.

Weiss slid down to the grass and continued to watch her teammates as they played around. Yang giggled aloud and grinned at Ruby before she turned her attention to Weiss on the other side of the rink. She twisted Ruby into a dizzying spin before skating over to the heiress, and dragging her onto the ice, Yang's heavy boots allowing them both to maintain their balance as they spun slowly on the slick surface. Yang smiled down at the girl she had wrapped in her arms, and Weiss latched onto the blonde's shoulders as she began to spin the two around in a waltz-like dance, their feet sliding across the sleek ice in sync. Her face reddened as she looked up into Yang's brilliant, amethyst eyes, her heart begging to beat in time to their movements.

Ruby whirred past the couple, a huge grin on her face as she mouthed something to her sister. She then proceeded to skate backwards in a figure eight while Yang twirled Weiss around once more, blocking her view of the brunette. Yang blushed at the words Ruby mouthed before she rolled her eyes, and nuzzled the top of Weiss's head, careful to avoid the expensive hairpiece that she always wore.

Weiss sighed, and rested her head against Yang's shoulder. "You know, this isn't exactly what I had in mind for today, but it's still nice."

"Yeah...I know." Yang smiled into the tufts of white hair as Ruby watched on.

_That seems...nice, _Ruby thought to herself as she watched her partner and sister, a strange feeling of loneliness welling inside of her as she realized how happy Weiss and Yang were together. "Weird," she murmured, trying to shake the feeling from her mind. "Hey, guys?" she called out to her teammates. "I'm going to head back! I just remembered I, uh, had a thing."

Yang glanced up at her worriedly. "Are you sure? Do you need help on the way back? There are still Grimm around this part of the forest."

"I'll be fine, Yang," her sister reassured her. "I have my baby with me." She held up Crescent Rose, and ran her fingers along the scythe's smooth armor.

Yang rolled her eyes. "Okay, then. See ya later."

Ruby nodded, and quickly started walking back toward the school, leaving Weiss and Yang to enjoy the rest of their morning together.

* * *

Blake's ears twitched as the door to Team RWBY's dorm opened unexpectedly. Amber eyes drifted from her book to see her—fearless?—leader walk in alone.

"Training become too much for you?" she asked simply as the younger girl entered the room.

Ruby walked over to Weiss's bed and plopped down, too exhausted to climb up onto her own. "No... I just started having the _strangest_ feeling."

"If it was the sudden urge to eat a thousand cookies, then it wasn't strange, you're just hungry," Blake quipped.

Ruby smirked at her teammate's remark. "Believe me, I think I'd know when I'm hungry... But, no, I can't really explain it..." The brunette reclined back against Weiss's pillow, and let out a high whistle, calling for her dog. Zwei climbed out from underneath Weiss's bed, and jumped up into Ruby's lap, his tail wagging. "Yang turned part of the forest into this huge ice-skating rink, and the three of us started playing around on the ice, but then I noticed how close Weiss and Yang have been getting, and, I don't know, something just felt really _weird_ about it."

"Weird?" Blake put down her book, and looked curiously at her teammate. "Weird how?"

"I, uh..." Ruby fumbled slightly as she thought to herself, _Maybe I shouldn't be talking about this..._ She turned her gaze toward the corgi in her lap, and gently scratched behind his ears. "You know what? It's probably nothing."

"No no. It's important to talk about things," Blake ensured her, unsure why this topic suddenly piqued her interest, but she wasn't going to let it just end right there. "Did you feel jealous of them? Like you wanted what they had? Someone to be that close to you?" The ninja smirked, her tone becoming teasing as she added those last two thoughts, not actually thinking that that was what Ruby had been feeling. If anything, she was probably just hungry, as always. The girl would find just about any excuse to help herself to a sweet snack.

Ruby blinked, her face flushed as she glanced at her teammate. "'Cause that would be crazy if I did, right?" She let out a nervous laugh. "Jealous... Psht."

_Huh?_ The older teammate pushed herself up in her bed, and turned to face Ruby. "No, anyone would be jealous of how close those two are," she said slowly. "They're so comfortable with each other. Actually, I'm sure that _training session_ they'd had planned was really supposed to be a date until you invited yourself along."

"Yeah, well, how was I supposed to know that?" Ruby quickly defended, not having realized she was being toyed with.

"Well they have been close and they did say they planned on training without us. Would _you_ want to tell your teammates—one being your sister—that you were going on a date with your sister's partner? How would Yang react if it were you and me?" Blake asked, trying to put the situation into perspective for her naive leader.

Silver eyes widened at the darker girl's implications. "Wait, _what_?"

Blake just grinned at the other girl's reaction. _This is actually sort of fun. _"Well, if you were to go on a date with me, would you want your sister to know?"

Ruby bit her lip before she said, "Well, yeah, I don't really hide anything from Yang, so..."

"Okay then." Blake nodded. "Well if you're not jealous of them, then what was the weird feeling? If you don't long for what they have, then what _do_ you want?"

"I don't know... I just feel kinda lonely, I guess..." Ruby gave her a tight-lipped smile. "Weiss is my partner, and Yang's my sister, and now that they're spending more time together, it's just you and me, and you're... well, you're not exactly the most talkative person in the world... This is probably the longest conversation we've had that's not about books or Torchwick."

"Fair enough." The Faunus began to reach for her book again, but when she glanced at her downcast leader, she sighed. "...I guess I can make an exception if you're truly lonely." Confusion took over Ruby's face as she looked at her teammate, who in turn rolled her eyes. "I'll hang out with you if you want."

The brunette's face suddenly lit up, a genuine smile forming at the corners of her lips. "Really? What do you want to do?"

"I have a feeling reading in silence isn't an option," Blake said with a knowing smile.

"Nope."

"Well... we could train together."

"Like _train_ train, or Weiss and Yang train?" Ruby asked for clarification.

"Actually, never mind," Blake responded.

"Oh! I have an idea!" Ruby exclaimed. She got up from her partner's bunk, and grabbed Blake's hand, dragging the bookworm out of bed. She grabbed a change of clothes for Blake, and handed it to her before she retrieved her own Slayer outfit, and rushed into the bathroom and out in a flurry of rose petals.

Still recovering from the sudden storm of roses, Blake felt herself being pushed toward the bathroom by her speedy leader.

"Change!" she heard the girl call as the door shut behind her. Blake looked around the rosy bathroom before she glanced down at her Infiltrator attire. She slowly changed into it, carefully maneuvering around her bow so as not to remove it. The black themed-girl exited the bathroom to find Ruby fiddling with Yang's dresser.

"What are you doing?" she asked in suspicion.

"Looking for the keys to Yang's bike," Ruby answered nonchalantly as she continued her search.

Blake rolled her eyes. "No. Wherever we're going, we're taking a cab." She reached for the back of Ruby's cloak, and dragged her leader away from the dresser and out the door.

"But Bumblebee's more fun!" Ruby argued as she tried to pull away, but she wasn't strong enough to break free of the older girl's grasp.

"And dangerous," Blake countered. "And I'm pretty sure you're not old enough to have your license."

"Just because I don't have my license doesn't mean I don't know how to drive!" Ruby continued to press. "Yang taught me!"

"Come on, Ruby. We're doing this _my_ way," Blake declared, tugging her friend away from the dorm and down the hall. The older teammate culled out her Scroll with her free hand and called a cab on the way out of the dormitory building, careful not to let Ruby fall or get away. "Yes, Beacon, we'll tell you when you get here." Finally, they made it outside, and waited for the cab to arrive, Blake's hand in a death-grip around Ruby's hood, holding the younger girl close so she couldn't escape to the garage. Once the driver pulled up, Blake practically shoved Ruby into the car. "Now Ruby, where are we going?"

"_Fine_," she muttered, turning away from Blake and to the driver. "To 265 Tammany Drive." She slumped back against her seat as the cab pulled out of the parking lot, and started down the cliff toward Vale.

"What's on Tammany Drive?" Blake asked.

"You'll see when we get there," was Ruby's only response as she crossed her arms over her chest. She let out a sigh as Blake finally loosened her grip on the cloak, rolling her eyes as she turned her amber gaze toward the scenery outside the window. Once the cab pulled up, Blake paid the driver and the two stepped out. Blake sighed before looking at her excited teammate. "Rizzly Arcade! It's the biggest, most popular arcade in the kingdom," Ruby exclaimed gleefully.

_This is what I agreed to... _Blake thought as she warily looked up at the giant, flashing sign above the building's entrance.

"Come on, Blake!" Ruby took Blake's hand, and lead the Faunus into the obnoxiously loud and crowded arcade. Ruby's grip on Blake's hand tightened as they pushed through the crowd, leading Blake seemingly blindly until they made it to a door in the back. Ruby confidently opened the door and pulled Blake down the hall, away from the loud bustle of the main room. She stopped when they finally come across a room with several old, antique video games. "What'd ya think? There's Grimm Eclipse, War of the Kingdoms, Kingdom Assault, Grimm Defense, and some pinball machines."

"It certainly is..." Blake mumbled out. Ruby looked to Blake, hopeful for approval. "...classic. And an upgrade from the noisy parlor."

Ruby grinned, pleased by her teammate's response. She let her gaze wander around the room for a moment before she excitedly turned back to Blake and asked, "What'd'ya wanna play first?"

"Well... are there any games we can both play?" Blake asked hesitantly.

"Well, we can play together in Grimm Eclipse and Grimm Defense, or we can play against each other in War of the Kingdoms and Kingdom Assault."

"I think together would be best. I've never really played video games before." Blake admitted to Ruby.

"Then let's play Grimm Defense!" Ruby rushed over to an arcade machine and slid in a lien card, causing the game to boot up. "Hurry, Blake! We need to select our kingdom."

Blake casually walked over and looked at the four kingdoms. "What's the difference?" she questioned as she gazed at the screen.

"Well, Atlas has robotic warriors that have high attack but low defense. Vacuo can collect supplies faster, Mistral has high defense, and Vale has the moderate stats. Atlas and Vale have cheaper units because of Faunus... er... labor..." Ruby slightly slouched as she realized her mistake.

"If I'm not offended by people, then I'm not offended by a game," Blake clarified. "What else, Ruby?"

Ruby perked up. "Well, avian Grimm don't attack Atlas, but their subterranean Grimm are a lot stronger. Mistral has a lot of strong ocean Grimm, but not a lot of the others. Vacuo has the strongest subterranean Grimm, but no ocean or avian Grimm. Vale is once again pretty balanced."

"Well...Vale seems to be the best option since I'm just starting out."

"Great!" Ruby pressed a button on the cabinet, and music began to sing from the machine's speakers. Blake stood next to Ruby and placed one hand on the joystick and the other on the buttons.

"Uh...what do these do?" she asked as she glanced between the screen and the controls.

"The joystick is to move the cursor, A is select/place unit, and B is back/delete a unit. You basically put down units, some are stationary while others will run to their enemy, to defend yourself from Grimm. But the waves get harder and harder as the game progresses," Ruby explained as she began moving around her cursor.

"So..." Blake looked at the two-dimensional screen and watched Ruby quickly place farms and military units.

"Hurry Blake!" Ruby told her as the first weak Beowolves came out and were attacked by soldiers holding swords. Blake placed down a dust quarry and another farm as Ruby placed more warriors to defend their kingdom. The game progressed with Blake managing their supplies while Ruby managed defenses. It was all good until wave 42. That was when Nevermores, Death Stalkers, _and_ an Ocean Grimm attacked, leading to the downfall of Vale. "Aww... we lost."

"Well, at least it was... fun, to say the least." Blake grinned at the giant smile Ruby gave her.

"_Really_?! Do you wanna try again?" Ruby asked her hopefully.

"Maybe another time." The cat Faunus reached out and patted the top of Ruby's head as disappointment filled the other girl's features. "But there are other games here we can still play."

The red-cloaked warrior beamed up at her teammate, glad to finally have someone to play games with again, even if she was still just a beginner. "How about Grimm Eclipse? That one's my personal favorite!"

"What do you have to do?"

"Oh, this one's much easier to pick up on. You just select a pre-designed Huntsman or Huntress, and fight off waves of Grimm while earning experience and unlocking new attack combinations as you level up... There's no real win-or-lose scenario, you just keep fighting for as long as you can, and the players with the highest scores get their names on a scoreboard in the front of the store for everyone to see!"

Blake let out a thoughtful hum, and walked toward the cabinet. "What are the controls?"

Ruby came up behind her, and gestured toward the cabinet. "Joy stick is moving around, A is Jump, B is attack, C is the ranged attack, D through F are your special moves, and G is your healing items," Ruby explained.

"Wha..." Blake looked at the daunting mass of buttons.

"Here, look." Ruby grabbed Blake's hands and guided her to the controls. Blake felt a slight blush at the more tender grasp on her hands than before when Ruby was dragging her around. Ruby placed her on the left side of the cabinet. "Okay, so left hand here—" Ruby lowered the hand on the joystick. "—and right over here." She placed Blake's other hand over the buttons. "So each button has the letter on it. On the screen it'll show you the cool down of your specials and how many items you have in your inventory. Think you got it?"

"...Yeah," Blake responded as Ruby reached down to pay, but Blake stopped her quickly. "You got the last one, let me pay."

"Okay." Ruby submitted with a small smile.

Blake paid and the game began. Ruby selected a tall, male scythe wielder whose name sounded like a type of bird. Blake just stared blankly at the huntsmen and huntresses, some famous names caught her eyes while others were unfamiliar.

"Here." Ruby reached around Blake's waist to move the older girl's left hand to select a wolf Faunus huntress. "Her stats fit your fighting style—runs in, hits hard, and gets out before she takes damage. She only has one sword, though." The younger girl retracted her arm, much to the Faunus's confused disappointment. The game started and the character names flashed on the screen along with their models.

Ami  
QROW

And so the game began. Ruby's character quickly ran toward the wave of spawning Grimm as Blake tested out her character. Soon enough their scores rose and the sounds of extreme button-mashing filled the room. Blake was a fast learner, and soon Qrow and Ami were dancing around the Grimm on screen. As with all beginner's luck, however, it soon ran out, and Blake was consumed by the horde of Grimm.

"Blake! No! I'll avenge you!" Ruby shouted at her friend's death. Blake smiled at the younger girl as she mashed buttons until she, too, collapsed to the forces of darkness. "Aw... we lost."

"Yeah, but look! We got 420,165 points!" Blake's excitement however fell when she saw the top score of over a billion points. Feeling her jaw go slack, Blake looked at Ruby's happy smile at the owner of the highest score.

Enabler

"Good game, Blake." Ruby told her.

"But we didn't win... Whoever that guy is, we'll beat him," Blake countered only for Ruby to chuckle at her determination.

"That _guy_ was me and Yang.".

"...What?" Blake said, surprised.

"Yeah. We used to come out here a lot." Ruby shrugged. "She's the one that showed me this room... She, uh... hasn't come here in a while, though. Signal school work started and... Well, I had fun today. I think I'm ready to head back to Beacon. "

"Yeah... Weiss and Yang are probably back by now," Blake muttered, strangely reluctant to leave. She gave her teammate a hesitant smile. "But we'll come back here again and try at that record, right, Ruby?"

"So... you want to come back?" Ruby asked hopefully.

"Of course I do. I... had fun today," Blake admitted, her smile growing.

Ruby grinned at the tall Faunus. "Good... See? Cool stuff can happen outside of the books, too."

Blake just smirked, and the two started for the door. "Have you ever heard of _Ashes of the Phoenix Warrior_?" she asked Ruby as they walked.

"The story about the teenager who lied about his age and enlisted in the military to take his father's place?" the younger girl questioned with ease.

"Yeah, that's the one." Blake smiled. "After months of grueling training and almost a year of making no headway in the war, he came up with a new strategy to build a giant, flammable bird out of torches and Dust, and he and his fleet flew it into the enemies' forts, destroying everything and winning the war."

"And after that, he became the youngest and strongest general in the kingdom,"Ruby finished, an accomplished smile playing on her lips as she and her teammate stepped out onto the sidewalk. "Yang used to read that book to me all the time when I was little. I guess I can relate to him in a way, being one of the youngest students at Beacon..."

"_And_ the youngest leader. That's got to count for something, right?" Blake added, and Ruby nodded.

"Why'd you bring it up?" she asked.

"Well, I've heard there's going to be a live-action film adaptation of the book coming out next month," Blake said with an almost imperceptible shrug. "I can't guarantee it'll be nearly as good as the original story, but it might be worth checking it out, if you're interested."

"Yeah, that'd be cool," Ruby answered almost immediately. She gave the darker girl an appreciative smile.

"Yeah... Well, we should get back now. Come on." Blake grabbed Ruby's right hand in her left, and dialed another cab on her Scroll. They waited outside for the cab, Blake still holding Ruby's hand, however with less urgency than before. When the cab arrived, the pair climbed inside, this time Ruby paying for the trip back to Beacon. As soon as the car left the curb, the brunette reclined back against her seat, and stifled a yawn.

"We were out a lot longer than I thought... What do you think Weiss and Yang are doing?"

"Probably sleeping with each other... as is next to each another," she added hasitly.

Ruby's face reddened at the remark. "You sure have a way with words, don't you?" Blake remained silent as she felt a slight warmth cross her cheeks. _There's that weird feeling again..._Ruby thought as she turned away from her teammate, and watched the scenery blur past as the cab made its way up the cliff. After a moment, she glanced back at Blake, noticing the Faunus's bow twitch as their eyes met. _T__his is... normal, right? _Blake gave her a tiny smile, as if reading Ruby's mind, and assuring her that everything was fine.

"Do you want to come back tomorrow?" Blake asked, a hint of hope in her voice. _If not then I'll just read my book alone... Though that doesn't sound as good as it usually does..._

Ruby returned her smile. "Uh, yeah... Sure!"

"We're still taking a cab tomorrow," Blake said, causing the cab driver to perk up.

"You know, you can personally ask for—" The man started, only for Blake to interrupt him.

"I'll ask for you... Rik," Blake paused as she read his name tag.

"Great, thanks." The cab sped up a bit as it went down less-crowded streets and made its way toward Beacon in a shorter time than it took to go to the arcade. Blake paid Rik and added a small tip. "Thank you very much," he said before stepping on the gas, and heading off to find his next fare.

"Ready to see what our teammates have been doing while we were away?" Blake asked Ruby as they walked up the steps. Ruby shrugged, and the two started back toward their dorm. As they approached their room, the sounds of voices trailed out into the hall.

"Weiss, you're doing it wrong!" Yang's voice called out.

"Well _sorry_ I've only done this once before!" Weiss argued back. Ruby and Blake froze just outside their door, their faces reddening as they exchanged a nervous look.

"I thought you had it under control!" Yang told her.

"Ladies, ladies, let's stop arguing and get on with it already," Jaune cut in.

Pyrrha groaned out, "I can't believe I let you guys talk me into this..."

Ruby raised an eyebrow. _Jaune? Pyrrha? _Blake took Ruby by the arm, and reached up with her free hand for the doorknob.

"Let's just get this over with..." The pair pushed through the door, sighing in relief when they found their friends sitting in a circle in the middle of the floor, Remnant: The Game in the center. All four looked up at Blake and Ruby as they walked into the room, Pyrrha giving them a pleading look that seemed to say _Get me out of this!_

"It's about time you guys came back!" Yang said, being the first to break the silence. "Where have you been all day?"

Blake's expression became stoic as she met her partner's questioning gaze, a tone of unenthusiasm filling her voice as she said, "I had to keep your sister entertained while you and Weiss played in the forest." _Though I would gladly do it again..._ she finished silently to herself.

Yang frowned. "Oh... Well, sorry about that..."

"Don't be, we're going out again tomorrow," Blake said calmly as she returned to her bed. Yang's eyes widened at Blake's implication, and the Faunus blushed as she realized how her words had sounded.

"She means hanging out," Ruby quickly added.

"Oh... well, uh..." Yang stumbled, at a loss of words. "...I attack Atlas with my forces," She said suddenly, distracting herself with the game at hand.

"Wait, what?" Jaune asked, befuddled at the unprovoked attack. Yang ruthlessly placed down a card from her hand.

"I also play Destined Death Stalker, which kills half of your ground forces," The blonde general declared. She rolled the dice. "Well?" she asked impatiently as she waited for Jaune to do the same.

Jaune's shaky hand rolled the dice. _Snake eyes_.

"Atlas is mine!" Yang said triumphantly as she cleared out the troops that had died on both sides of the short skirmish.

Weiss glanced up at her teammates as Pyrrha took her turn, her icy, blue eyes immediately narrowing in on Blake's left hand, which was still wrapped tightly around Ruby's wrist. The heiress was just about to question them when Pyrrha laid down the dreaded Desert Sandstorm card, her Vacuo warriors taking out Weiss's last fleet of Mistral soldiers.

"Looks like you're out, Weiss... I'm sorry!" Pyrrha said apologetically. Weiss's jaw dropped as she turned back to the board, disappointment flooding her features as both Jaune and Yang laughed at her defeat.

"Let's face it, you didn't stand a chance," Yang said, receving a grimace from the heiress.

"At least I'm not the _first_ to lose this time," Weiss said with a smirk as she glanced over at Jaune. "I thought you said you were good at this game."

"I am! When I used to play against my sisters, I'd win all the time!" Jaune said in humiliation as he tried to save face.

"Don't worry Snowflake, I'll avenge you. Best of luck to you Pyrrha." Yang grinned as she set her forces en route toward Mistral.

"Wait... Did you have units at the ready to attack me?" Weiss asked in shock.

"Not until we were the last kingdoms left. I swear I wasn't going to attack you until end game," Yang defended as she sent her military to Mistral, and easily took Pyrrha's army that had been weakened by the fight with Weiss. Yang marched her armies toward Vacuo. "Sorry, Pyrrha, but Remnant's mine."

Yang quickly took Vacuo with her forces after merging her Atlas and Vale armies. Weiss pushed herself up to her feet, and walked over to her bed to get a better overhead view of the board. The white-haired warrior watched with a grin as Yang played her last card, which let her simultaneously destroy Vacuo and Mistral, and win the game.

"YES!" Yang cheered at her small, yet victorious army.

"Wait... Did I just lose?" Pyrrha asked, confused.

"Don't worry, Pyrrha, we'll get back at her next time around!" Jaune reassured her.

"It'll have to wait for another time," Weiss told the pair. "It's getting late."

Pyrrha stood up, and helped her partner to his feet. "Yeah, Ren and Nora are probably back by now. We should return to our dorm before Nora tears the place apart again."

"Good game, ladies!" Jaune bowed before he took Pyrrha by the arm, and lead her out of the room.

Once they were gone, Ruby and Blake joined the little circle, and helped Yang pick up the pieces of the game. Time passed, and the team collectively decided to go to sleep. Yang changed clothes and climbed up to her own bed before she paused. She climbed back down, and got in bed with Weiss.

"What are you doing?!" The heiress harshly whispered.

"I'm snuggling my Snowflake. Do you want me to leave?" Yang teased.

"No... You've already made it warmer, and if you left I'd be cold... Now, come on." Weiss pulled Yang closer and the blonde smiled as they fell asleep together.

Blake watched on in the darkness, frown on her face. _It's like a romance novel... It seems nice... _She rolled over onto her side and fell asleep, memories of that day playing through her head like a sweet dream.


	9. Confession

**A/N: Hey, guys! Sorry it's been soooooo long since our last update! I've been SUPER busy with _Lost &amp; Found_ and Slayer's been super busy with _A Queen's Good Knight_, BUT Slayer took the liberty to write the most recent chapter since I've been slacking, I'm sorry about that! BUT we hope to get Chapter 10 out to you guys sometime within the next couple of weeks, so please bear with us! **

**Also, you might notice toward the end of this chapter that things start to get a little... OOC, or at least we take liberty with the ambiguity of the Schnee family. Well, remember when we called this an AU? Yeah, this is where that becomes very evident. Anyway, hope you still enjoy! - EJ**

* * *

Weiss rolled over in bed as her Scroll started to ring. She rubbed her eyes and let out a squeaky yawn before turning to reach for her Scroll, but she was instantly stopped by Yang stirring beside her, and picking up the device.

"Hello?" The blonde mumbled lazily into the Scroll. Weiss's eyes widened as she heard her sister's voice say something on the other end, and she instantly sat up and wrestled the Scroll out of Yang's hands.

"Winter!" Weiss exclaimed happily, hoping her sister wouldn't make anything of a "stranger" answering a Scroll that didn't belong to her.

"Weissy!" Winter replied in joy. "Who was that?"

Weiss let out a nervous chuckle. "Uh, it was just one of my teammates... Why are you calling so early in the morning?"

"I got you scheduled with father," Winter announced.

Weiss blinked. "Really?"

"Yes, really," her sister replied. "You're to meet him two weeks from next Saturday, at seven-thirty in the evening."

_Two weeks? That'll at least give me and Yang some time to figure out what we're going to say..._ Weiss glanced at the blonde, who was watching her tiredly, her lilac eyes half-lidded. She smirked as she continued to listen to her sister talking away on the other end.

"Make sure you eat before you come. _Oh_! And if you bring the girl you like, make sure that she's dressed appropriately..." Winter paused for a moment before lowering her voice. "Actually, bring her, but make sure she makes a good first impression. Oh, and—"

The heiress rolled her eyes. "I'll be fine, Winter," she said, cutting her off. "Thank you everything... I really appreciate it."

"It's not a problem, Weissy." The older Schnee let out a quiet hum into the receiver. "I've always been here for you..."

Weiss smiled into the device. "I should've listened to you all those years ago... I promise I'll make it up to you."

"You don't have to do anything. Just make a good impression, and secure your spot at the SDC."

"I will. Thank you again. Bye." Weiss ended the call, and handed her Scroll back to Yang, who was now sitting up in bed, stifling a yawn as she placed the device back on the bookshelf.

"What was that about?" Yang asked curiously.

"You're meeting my father in two weeks," Weiss told her as she slowly sunk back into her pillows, and rolled away from the blonde. "Now, go back to sleep. It's early."

"Okay..." Yang said as she began to lie back down. Just as her head hit the pillow, however, Weiss's words had sunk in, and she bolted upright in bed. "Wait, what? I'm meeting _who_ in a couple of weeks?!"

"My father," Weiss muttered from her bedding. "Don't worry, he's really not that bad... It's the step-monster you have to worry about."

Yang snorted in laughter. "Step-monster?"

"It's an old childhood nickname... Just go to sleep."

The blonde rolled her eyes. "So I'm meeting your dad? Coo—"

"No," Weiss interrupted her tiredly. "You're meeting my father."

Her teammate looked at her in confusion. "Uh...?"

"I'll tell you another time... _If _our meeting with my father works out," she hastily added.

"Okay..." Yang laid back down and snuggled up to Weiss. "Well, I'm here for you, Snowflake."

Weiss closed her eyes and let out a small, relieved sigh. _That was a close call... _she thought to herself as the recalled Winter, Father, and her stepmother, and wondered how in the world she was ever going to be able to tell Yang about her family's very twisted past. But Weiss knew that if there was anyone who would be able to understand, it would be Yang—after everything she went through with her own step-mother, father, Ruby, and her biological mother, Weiss could only hope that Yang would be willing to accept all the crazy parts of her and her own family.

Yang wrapped her arms around Weiss and pulled her close. "Sleepy time, Snowflake," she whispered, pressing a kiss to the smaller girl's pale cheek before drifting back off to sleep.

* * *

"What do you mean you're taking a trip to Atlas in a couple weeks?!"

Weiss cringed at the sound of the squeaky, high-pitched voice that she'd become more than accustomed to hearing since she'd been partnered with Ruby Rose. "I have to take care of something with my father," she calmly explained to the girl now, Ruby's bright, silver eyes narrowing at her in an accusatory glare.

"Why not me? _I'm_ your partner." Ruby frowned, evidently hurt that she would be left behind.

Weiss sighed. "My father specifically requested that Yang be the one to come with me."

Ruby crossed her arms. "Is this a couple thing?"

The heiress just rolled her eyes at her leader. "Yes, Ruby, it's a _couple_ thing..."

_So we're a couple now? Yes!_ Yang mentally cheered. She turned to her sister. "So are you going to let us go, or not?"

"Fine... But what am I supposed to do when both of you are gone all weekend?"

"You and Blake seem to be getting along pretty well, lately. I'm sure she'd _love_ to spend time with you." Weiss grinned as she tossed a small smile at her other teammate, whose amber eyes narrowed at her silently.

"How long will you be gone? Including the time on the airship there and back?" Blake finally spoke up.

"Well, in order to make it to Atlas by seven-thirty, we'll probably have to leave by noon on Saturday, and we'll be back by Sunday afternoon." Weiss replied to Blake.

"I'm kind of jealous that Yang gets to see the inside of your family's mansion..." Ruby pouted.

"Believe me, it's nothing special," Weiss told her, raising an eyebrow. _If you had to spend as much time there as I did, you'd get tired of it really quickly..._

"Does your family have a butler? I bet you've got ten butlers!" Ruby stated excitedly.

"I—" Weiss looked over at Blake, not wanting to mention that some of her family's servants were Faunus. However, Blake didn't seem to be paying any attention to Weiss's words, and the heiress frowned as she followed her teammate's amber gaze to her partner's smiling face. _What is it with her?_ She shook her head before turning back to Ruby. "Yes, we have a lot of hired help."

She then grabbed Yang by the arm, and leaned in close to whisper into the taller girl's ear, an action that confused Ruby, and one Blake ignored all together.

"Why is Blake staring at your sister like that?" Weiss asked, just loud enough for Yang to hear, but for Ruby to miss. Blake's ears twitched under her bow, and she returned her gaze back to her book, mild blush to her cheeks.

_I...didn't know I was staring._ Blake thought to herself as she stared blankly at the pages, failing to read as she thought about what she had been doing. Yang looked over at Blake to see her reading her book with a blush.

"What do you mean?" Yang whispered back to Weiss. _She's probably reading smut or something like that,_ Yang thought to herself with a small frown.

Weiss glanced up at Blake, who was now staring intently at her book. _Dang. She heard me._ She sighed, and released Yang's arm. "Never mind…." She turned her gaze to Ruby, who was still standing in the room, oblivious to everything going on around her as she continued to rattle off about her idealizations of Weiss's family.

"—and I bet you have your own ski resort, and probably—" The young brunette continued.

Blake, however, lowered her book, and searched for Ruby's gaze across the room. "Hey, Ruby?"

Ruby paused her excited speech, hands frozen in the air, and looked over at her Faunus teammate. "Yeah?"

"Would you like to head out now?" Blake asked her.

The brunette lowered her hands to her side. "Yeah, but I just have one more question for Wei—"

"Go!" Weiss told her, rolling her eyes. "You and Blake should spend some quality time with each other before Yang and I leave."

Ruby blinked blankly at Weiss, but her expression was quickly replaced with a smile. "Okay, fine," she said before she hurried out the door. Blake shut her book and placed it back on the bookshelf before she walked after her leader, giving a small smile to Weiss as she exited. As soon as the two were gone, Weiss turned her attention back to Yang, exhaling in relief.

"I thought they'd never leave," the heiress admitted.

"Eh, they're not so bad," Yang replied with a smile.

"So, what should we do?" Weiss asked as she sat on the bed.

"We could pack early?" Yang suggested. She walked over to the closet and pulled out one of Weiss's many suitcases. "Clothes are obvious. Ammo? Probably not."

"It's probably best if you just grab an overnight bag and—" Weiss started only for Yang to toss a duffel bag at her, hitting her in the chest. Weiss slightly frowned as she lifted the bag. "Aren't we getting a little ahead of ourselves by packing now, anyway?"

"Better safe than sorry," Yang said as she put away Weiss's suitcase, and walked over to the bed. Weiss handed her the bag, and the blonde quickly stuffed it with a pair of underwear and her spare pajamas. "Hmm... Should I bring my usual clothes or my Hunter outfit?"

"Uh... Do you have anything more _modest_?" Weiss asked, gesturing toward Yang's bare stomach. "What about that dress you wore to the dance?"

Her teammate frowned. "But what's wrong with my usual clothes?"

Weiss drew in a deep breath. "Absolutely nothing... But I think you'd make a better impression if you at least tried to dress up a little bit." She paused for a moment before adding, "Oh! Or your Beacon uniform. That'll work, too."

"...Doesn't that seem kinda lazy though? Like, it's _school_ clothes." Yang furrowed her eyebrows. "Besides, won't that give them the wrong impression? That's not how I usually dress."

_She has a point... But if Step-Mother is there, she most definitely won't approve... Heck, she won't approve either way. Might as well just let Yang be herself. _Weiss let out a thoughtful hum before glancing back up at the waiting blonde. "Okay, then. Bring both your Hunter outfit and your usual one. We'll have my sister decide... Fair?"

"Sounds good." Yang folded up both sets of clothes neatly before placing them in her duffel bag. She then grabbed a clean bra and placed them inside before she zipped it shut. "There we go."

Weiss gave her an appreciative smile. "Thanks for not completely flaking out on me."

"Well, you're my Snowflake. I want to make sure this goes well."

"If this goes well, then we can be out... in public." Weiss walked over to Yang and took her hands in her own. The taller girl grinned as the heiress gazed deeply into orbs of violet. "What you did with that Ice Dust last weekend was pretty impressive. If you tell my father you've been practicing using Dust, I'm sure he'll be pleased... I just—I can't thank you enough for doing this. There's no one else I'd rather be going through this with."

Yang gave Weiss's hands a gentle squeeze. "I'll mention it, and... I wouldn't want you to go with anyone else. I'm happy to be with you."

"I'm happy to be with you, too." Weiss reached up and gave her a light peck on the lips, smiling as she pulled away. "By the way, I'm pretty sure something's going on with Ruby and Blake. Or at least with Blake. She's been acting... _weird_ ever since the other day."

"Psht, Blake's always reading her books," Yang said, brushing it off.

"She really was watching your sister," Weiss said flatly.

Yang rolled her eyes. "And I'm sure you were watching my butt while I was packing," she joked, only to be met with silence. She blinked. "Wait... were you?"

Weiss felt her face start to redden. "We're not talking about that right now, we're talking about Blake."

The brawler let out a heart laugh. "Yeah, well I'm sure it's nothing. If there was something between them then Ruby wouldn't be able to stop talking about it."

"Hmm, you have a point... Maybe it's just a one-sided attraction, then." Weiss suggested.

"If there's any at all," Yang added.

_I know what I saw. _Weiss pulled away from Yang. "Well, anyway... What would you like to do for the remainder of the afternoon?"

Yang grinned at Weiss. "Well... you still need to pack," _so I can look at your butt_, Yang thought silently before continuing after a brief pause. "We can lay down and relax, we can go out to the gardens and look at the flowers, we could train, or we could do something else."

"I don't need to pack," Weiss told her. "I've already got everything I need at home."

"Really? Because I could've sworn you brought your entire home with you when you first arrived to Beacon."

"Ha-ha, very funny." Weiss laughed dryly. _I actually only brought about a quarter of my closet... _She walked over to the closet on the other side of the dorm, and pulled down a couple of dresses from the racks. "But if it makes you happy—" Weiss carried the dresses over to her bed and plopped then down on the mattress. She lowered herself to the floor, and reached under her bed for her own overnight bag, relieved to see that Zwei hadn't yet tried to chew it up. Weiss placed it on her bed, as well and neatly folded the dresses, sat them inside, and turned back to Yang. The blonde arched a thin, golden eyebrow as Weiss added a few changes of underwear and shoes into the bag before she zipped it closed. "There. Done."

"You're really going to need all of that?" Yang asked.

The heiress shrugged. "You never know. I may be feeling a little indecisive by the time we leave."

"Hmm..." Yang glanced around the room. "Well, then, I guess that's that. What do you want to do?"

"I liked that garden idea..." Weiss smiled before letting out a small sigh. "...Also, there are a few things I should probably tell you about my family before our trip. I'm sure my sister's going to bring some of it up at some point, so I'd rather have you hear it from me."

Yang frowned. "Oh... Well, you can tell me in the garden... unless you think they're too personal to risk?"

"No, it's okay, the garden is fine," Weiss assured her.

"Okay." Yang offered her hand and Weiss took it as they walked to the garden. As soon as they turned the corner, a door was heard opening.

"I ship it!" Nora shouted at the white and yellow duo. Weiss and Yang sped up around the corner and reached the garden in a hurry. The two slowed their pace once they entered the garden walls.

They finally found a stone bench and decided to relax. Yang sat down first and realized that the bench was a tad cold in the cool morning's breeze. As Weiss began to sit down, Yang quickly pulled the smaller girl onto her lap.

"Yang!" Weiss exclaimed in shock as she landed on the blonde's lap.

"The bench is cold. Now you don't have to sit on it," Yang explained with a grin.

Weiss nervously glanced around the garden. Realizing they were the only students in the area, Weiss sighed, and leaned back into Yang's form, relaxing in her lap. "She's going to do that every time she sees us together, now, isn't she?"

"Who? Nora? Probably." Yang shrugged. "So what about your family?"

Weiss let out a thoughtful hum. _W__here do I even start? _She glanced up at Yang with a half-smile. "Well, I don't know if you already knew this, but before my father met his current wife, he was married to a man for quite some time."

Yang blinked, clearly taken off-guard. "Re-really? Your dad's gay? Then why's there so much worry about coming out?"

"My _dad_ was gay... My father is bisexual," she explained. "And his current wife is incredibly homophobic, and she's got this idea in her head that she's somehow _fixed_ him just because he chose to be with a woman."

"Oh..." The blonde sunk back against the cool metal of the bench. "So she's the one we have to worry about... I'm guessing beating her up isn't an option, is it?"

Weiss sighed. "No, Yang, it's not... Though my sister and I once tried to poison her water..."

Yang raised an eyebrow. "Wait, what?"

The heiress chuckled. "We were kids, we just used salt. But Winter stood up for me and took all the blame." She frowned. "Anyway, when we were little, our stepmother, Edith, found a picture of Winter kissing her best friend on the cheek, and the woman was practically rabid with rage... Winter was supposed to be the heiress of the SDC, but after our stepmother found that picture, she made my father pass the title on to me, and so I've had to hide my sexuality all this time, because I'm pretty much the only hope for the Schnee Dust Company to make things better for the Faunus."

"Wow... that's very honorable of you," Yang told her, giving her arm a light, comforting touch.

Weiss gave Yang a thin-lipped smile. "I... It's not, really. I've only been living this way out of fear, and to be honest, I'm quite envious of my sister. She can do just about anything she wants because our stepmother gave up on her long ago, but the only thing she wants is to run the company, and the only thing _I_ want is to find something that makes me happy."

Yang hummed sympathetically, and slowly began to rub small, soothing circles into Weiss's skin. "Well... Can't you just give it to her? Your sister, I mean? Then you can still be a Huntress, your sister gets the company, and the Faunus get better lives... Though you're smart, so I'm guessing you already thought of that."

Weiss leaned back against Yang's chest. "I've already tried that. Our stepmother is the reason the SDC still has anti-Faunus policies. My dad and father were just about to finally make things right for the Faunus, until she came along and ruined everything... She knows Winter is fond of Faunus, and so she believes my sister to be a bad influence on the company, not to mention our stepmother still thinks Winter is attracted to women..." Weiss sighed at the concept of being gay—or being anything other than a straight, rich Human—being wrong.

"Well... why not get the company, and then give it to Winter? If you own it and you give it to her, then your step-monster can't really do anything, right?" Yang grinned at Weiss at the use of her own childish nickname for the woman.

"I... actually never thought of that before," Weiss admitted sheepishly, giving Yang an appreciative smile. "See? Having you around really _is_ beneficial for the company!"

Yang smiled widely at the girl in her lap. "I'm extremely happy to help."

"And I'm extremely happy to _have_ your help." Weiss turned around so that she was facing Yang, and she wrapped her arms around the other girl's neck. She looked out into the garden to her side, taking in the fresh air and serene atmosphere. "Maybe if I'm lucky, and we get through this meeting with Father, and you're still with me by the time I take over the company, I'll hire you as my own personal bodyguard so that woman can't come near me or the company ever again... And then I'll pass the company on to Winter, of course, if she still wants it."

Yang pecked Weiss on the lips. "You know, I don't think it's a good idea to be in a relationship with your employee." She smiled. "But I'm sure that this is an exception."

"Well, I know how much you like beating up horrible people..." Weiss returned her kiss, this time a little longer and more passionate than before, and as Weiss pulled away she felt herself grin. "Yang Xiao Long, where have you been all my life?"

Yang laughed. "Waiting for you to let me join it."

Weiss smirked. _God, we're so sappy... _She let out an airy laugh. "You know, I promised my sister a long time ago that I wouldn't fall in love until I take over the Schnee Dust Company, but I think you just might be—" She stopped herself as soon as she realized what she'd just said, her heart climbing into her throat as she braved a look at Yang. _No no no, you didn't just say that... What if she doesn't feel the same way so soon?_

Yang's eyes widened at the words that came out of Weiss's mouth before she stopped herself short. She tried to say something, but nothing left her lips. Weiss shifted nervously on Yang's lap, and started to turn around, but just as she was about to stand, Yang grabbed her by the arm, pulling her back down. "I love you, too..."

"Y-you do?" Weiss let out a relieved, ecstatic breath, and threw her arms around the taller girl's neck. "Oh, thank God!"

Yang cradled Weiss warmly as she pressed a kiss to the top of her head. "I love you, Weiss... my Snowflake," she whispered into Weiss's ear.

Weiss drew in a deep breath, taking in Yang's scent, and wishing with all of her heart that she could just call the blonde the one thing she wanted most—her girlfriend. But she still had to wait two more weeks, at least until she could do her best to convince her father that Yang was truly what was best for her. No matter what, she couldn't lose her. She'd already fallen, already confessed, and Schnees never went back on their words. "I love you, too, Yang... my Firebomb."


	10. Hiatus

**A/N: Hey, guys! So I just wanted to take a little time to let you all know that Snowflakes &amp; Firebombs is currently on hiatus until further notice. My writing partner and I started this fic out almost a year ago as a set of ongoing RPs through private messaging on Rooster Teeth's old site, but since the new site has been created, PMs from the old site still have yet to be migrated, and as a result, my writing partner and I have lost a majority of RPs. Until we get them back, we will not be able to continue this fic, but we promise that as soon as messages are migrated, we will get a new chapter posted as soon as possible!**

**While you're all waiting, please feel free to check out some of mine and Slayer_ONE's individual fanfictions, such as Slayer's _A Queen's Good Knight_ and my own _Lost &amp; Found_. We are also currently working on a new RP together that will be a standalone one-shot, and as soon as that's finished, we will post it here for your discretion.**

**Anyway, hope ya'll bear with us! Love ya!**

**\- EJ**


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